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THE  LIBRARY 
OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 
LOS  ANGELES 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2013 


http://archive.org/details/matchlessmysteryOOspur 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY 


AND  OTHER  SERMONS. 


BY 

CHARLES  H.  SPURGEOK 


TEXTH  SERIES. 


TOGETHER  WITH 

COMPLETE  INDEXES 


OF  THE   TEXTS  AND  SUBJECTS  OF   THE  ENTIRE 
FOURTEEN  VOLUMES  OF  THE  AMERICAN 
EDITION  OF   HIS  WORKS. 


EDITED  BY 

JOHN  STANFORD  HOLME. 


NEW  YORK: 
SHELDON  &  COMPANY, 
1878. 


3X 


EDITORIAL  NOTE. 


If  there  is  a  minister  of  the  gospel  in  the  world  who  is 
truly  cosmopolitan,  that  man  is  Charles  H.  Spurgeon.  For 
those  who  enjoy  his  ministrations  from  week  to  week  are  not 
those  alone  who  sit  within  the  crowded  walls  of  the  New 
Metropolitan  Tabernacle  on  the  Surrey  side  of  the  Thames, 
but  they  are  found  in  every  quarter  of  the  globe.  Through 
the  periodical  press  of  this  country  he  preaches  the  gospel 
to  a  larger  audience  than  any  man  on  this  Continent.  Mr. 
Spurgeon  has  now  ministered  for  many  years  to  the  largest 
congregation  in  the  world.  To  see  him  and  to  hear  him 
has  become  a  matter  of  curiosity  to  all  who  visit  the  great 
Metropolis.  But  it  is  not  on  these  accounts  chiefly  that  he 
is  a  man  of  general  interest  throughout  Christendom.  It 
is  rather  that  over  fifteen  hundred  of  the  sermons  of  this 
one  man  have  been  accurately  reported  and  printed.  It  is 
that  the  number  of  readers  of  these  sermons  has  continued 
steadily  to  increase  for  more  than  twenty  years,  until  now 
they  are  read  weekly  by  hundreds  of  thousands  wherever 
the  English  tongue  is  spoken.  It  is  above  all  that  these 
sermons  have  been  blessed  to  the  conversion  and  edification 
of  multitudes  in  all  lands.  These  are  facts  which  render  the 
ministrations  of  Mr.  Spurgeon  of  world-wide  interest  and 
place  him  in  the  front  rank  of  the  preachers  of  the  gospel 
of  all  ages. 

Many  of  the  causes  of  the  wonderful  popularity  of  this 

762371 


4 


EDITORIAL  NOTE. 


distinguished  preacher  are  not  difficult  to  discover.  In 
freshness  and  vigor  of  thought,  in  simplicity  and  purity 
of  language,  in  grasp  of  gospel  truth,  and  in  tact  and  force 
in  its  presentation,  he  is  perhaps  without  a  peer  in  the 
pulpit. 

When  in  early  life  Mr.  Spurgeon  commenced  his  min- 
istrations in  the  New  Park  Street  Church  in  London,  he 
quickly  filled  the  old  house  to  overflowing.  Soon  he  at- 
tracted the  attention  of  all  England.  But  he  was  regarded 
by  many  as  a  brilliant  meteor  that  would  soon  fade  away. 
Yet  Mr.  Spurgeon  is  to-day,  a  vastly  more  effective  and 
even  a  more  brilliant  preacher  than  he  was  twenty  years 
ago.  He  continues  to  grow  in  brilliancy  as  well  as  in  effi- 
ciency year  by  year.  No  one  can  yet  point  to  the  slightest 
indication  of  exhaustion  in  either  his  faculties  or  his  re- 
sources. 

This  doubtless  is  attributable  in  a  measure  to  his  in- 
dustry, and  well-directed  application,  as  well  as  to  natural 
ability  and  great  personal  piety.  But /Mr.  Spnrgeon's  pe- 
culiar views  of  the  word  of  God,  and  his  manner  of  pre- 
paration for  the  pulpit  also  tend  in  no  small  degree  to  se- 
cure the  inexhaustible  variety  which  so  strikingly  charac- 
terizes his  sermons.  It  is  not  his  manner  to  spin  his  web 
out  of  himself.  The  resources  from  which  he  draws  are 
not  measured  by  the  strength  and  the  store  of  his  own 
faculties,  but  rather  by  the  infinite  fullness  of  the  divine 
word.  He  never  preaches  from  a  topic.  He  always  has  a 
text.  His  text  is  not  a  mere  motto,  but  in  it  he  finds  his 
sermon.  He  uses  his  text  with  as  much  apparent  reverence 
and  appreciation  as  if  those  few  words  were^he  only  words 
that  God  had  ever  spoken.  The  text  is  the  gem.  which 
furnishes  the  life — the  spirit  and  the  substance  of  the  dis- 
course. Every  sermon  has  the  peculiar  flavor  and  fragrance 


EDITORIAL  NOTE. 


5 


and  color  of  the  divine  seed-truth  of  which  it  is  the  growth. 
Thus  as  the  Bible  is  a  storehouse  of  seed-truths  inexhaust- 
ible and  of  infinite  variety,  so  Mr.  Spurgeon's  sermons  are 
never  alike.  "Every  seed  yields  its  fruit  after  its  kind." 
If  he  brings  you  up  again  and  again  to  the  same  old  truths 
it  is  always  on  a  different  side,  or  in  a  new  light  or  with 
new  surroundings. 

A  very  strong  confirmation  of  this  view  has  been 
afforded  us  in  the  preparation  of  this  edition  of  his  works. 
In  making  up  the  iudex  of  subjects,  it  was  necessary  to 

j  go  carefully  through  the  entire  fourteen  volumes  page  by 
page,  and  to  note  the  different  topics  discussed,  and  then 

j  to  arrange  them  in  alphabetical  order.  When  this  work 
was  done  such  was  the  wonderful  variety  of  subject,  of 
thought  and  of  illustration,  that  in  many  thousand  refer- 
ences, no  two  subjects  or  thoughts  or  illustrations  were  found 
exactly  to  correspond.  The  preacher  is  discussing  essentially 
the  same  familiar  truths  over  and  over  again.  He  is  pre- 
senting the  same  great  Saviour  to  lost  sinners  with  what 
might  seem  slavish  fidelity  to  the  spirit  and  even  to  the 
letter  of  the  written  word.  And  yet  his  setting  forth  of 
truth,  his  shades  of  thought  and  his  modes  of  illustration, 
always  arrange  themselves  in  new  forms  and  colors  with 
well  nigh  the  endless  variety  of  the  combinations  and  tints 
of  the  clouds  at  setting  sun. 

It  is  not  surprising  therefore,  that  sermons  so  varied, 
fresh,  and  evangelical  should  have  so  large  a  circulation  in 
this  country — nor  that  the  publishers  should  now  be  con- 
strained to  add  still  another  volume  to  their  already  ex- 
tended series.  This  will  be  the  Tenth,  and  will  increase 
the  number  of  sermons  contained  in  this  edition  of  his 
works  to  more  than  two  hundred  and  fifty.  As  some  of 
these  volumes  have  had  an  issue  of  one  hundred  thousand 


G 


EDITORIAL  NOTE. 


copies,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  circulation  of  these  sermons 
even  in  this  country  is  altogether  without  precedent,  and 
as  the  verdict  of  the  Christian  public,  it  fully  justifies  the 
estimate  we  have  placed  upon  them. 

The  discourses  for  the  present  series  have  been  carefully 
Beleeted  out  of  more  than  three  hundred  published  in  Eng- 
land since  the  issue  of  the  last  volume  of  the  American 
edition.  In  the  selection  the  editor  has  been  influenced 
chiefly  by  a  desire  to  present  those  best  calculated  to  do 
good  in  this  country.  And  he  has  been  perplexed  only 
by  the  richness  of  the  field  from  which  he  has  been  called 
to  choose. 

J  Every  book  that  is  worth  publishing,  ought  to  be  in- 
dexed. To  ordinary  readers  indexes  are  useful.  To  min- 
isters, Sunday  school  teachers  and  students  generally  they 
are  almost  indispensable.  It  will  be  readily  seen  therefore, 
that  the  value  of  the  works  of  Mr.  Spurgeon  will  be  greatly 
enhanced  by  a  full  index',  by  means  of  which  their  rich  and 
varied  contents  are  made  easily  accessible.  These  consider- 
ations  have  influenced  the  publishers  to  have  compiled  at 
great  labor  complete  indexes  of  both  texts  and  subjects  of 
the  entire  fourteen  volumes  embraced  in  this  edition  of  Mr.  j 
Spnrgeon's  works.  Hereby  it  is  hoped  that  their  influence,  j 
through  the  divine  blessing,  may  be  greatly  increased,  and 
that  they  may  go  forth  on  a  new  mission  for  good  through- 
out  the  land.  J.  S.  H. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Sditorial  Note   3 

SERMON  L 

rhe  Matchless  Mystery   9 

SERMON  n. 

Harrow  and  Fatness   28 

SERMON  IIL 

idditions  to  the  Church   48 

SERMON  IV. 

b.  Lesson  from  the  Life  of  King  Asa   68 

•SERMON  V. 

Without  Money  and  Without  Price   87 

SERMON  VI. 

Questions  of  the  Day  and  The  Question  of  the  Day   107 

SERMON  VIL 

The  Monster  Dragged  to  Light   127 

SERMON  VIII. 

An  Old-Fashioned  Conversion   147 

SERMON  EX. 

Harvest  Men  Wanted   167 


8  CONTENTS. 


SERMON  X. 

/  PAGE 

JThe  Father's  Will   ...  186 

SERMON  XI. 

How  a  Man's  Conduct  comes  Home  to  Him   203  j 

SERMON  XII. 

The  Priest  Dispensed  With  223 

SERMON  XIII. 

The  Sacred  Love-Token   243 

SERMON  XIV. 

The  Lion-Slayer— The  Giant-Killer  262 

SERMON  XV. 

The  God  of  Bethel  282 

SERMON  XVI. 

The  Story  of  a  Runaway  Slave  302 

SERMON  XVII. 

j  V  Lovest  Thou  Me  ?  "  -.   322 

SERMON  XVIII. 
My  God   343 

SERMON  XIX. 

The  Little  Dogs  360 

SERMON  XX. 

^neas  379 

Index  of  Texts  401  i 

Index  of  Subjects  


SERMON  I. 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 

I  For  we  are  members  of  liis  body,  of  his  flesli  and  of  his  bones."—- 
Ephesians  v.  30. 

I  do  not  hesitate  to  say  that  this  is  one  of  the  most  won- 
derful texts  in  the  whole  compass  of  revelation.  It  sets 
forth  the  mystery  of  mysteries,  the.  yery  pith  and  marrow 
of  the  loftiest  divinity.  It  is  fitted  rather  to  be  the  theme 
for  a  hundred  elaborate  discourses  than  for  one  brief  homily. 
Most  assuredly  it  is  a  deep  that  knows  no  sounding,  an  abyss 
where  thought  plunges  into  never-ending  contemplations. 
He  who  handles  it  had  need,  first  of  all,  to  be  filled  with 
all  the  fulness  of  God.  Hence  we  feel  incapable  of  dealing 
with  it  as  it  should  be  dealt  with  ;  it  is  all  too  great  and 
vast  for  us,  we  can  no  more  hope  to  compass  it  than  a  child 
can  hold  an  ocean  in  his  hand.  Beloved,  it  is  a  text  that 
mast  not  be  looked  upon  with  the  eyes  of  cold,  theological 
orthodoxy,  which  might  make  us  content  to  say,  "  Yes,  that 
is  a  great  and  important  truth,"  and  there  leave  it.  It  is  a 
text  to  be  treated  as  the  manna  was  that  fell  from  heaven ; 
namely,  to  be  tasted,  to  be  eaten,  to  be  digested,  and  to  be 
lived  upon  from  day  to  day.  It  is  a  text  for  the  quietude  of 
tour  meditation,  when  you  can  sit  still  and  turn  it  over,  and, 
like  Mary,  ponder  it  in  your  hearts.  Long  and  loving  should 
be  your  gaze  upon  the  facets  of  this  diamond  of  truth,  this 
Koh-i-noor  of  revelation.    It  is  a  golden  sentence  fitted  for 


10 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


those  choice  hours  when  the  King  brings  ns  into  his  banquet- 
ing house,  and  his  banner  over  us  is  love  ;  when  the  distance 
between  earth  and  heaven  has  become  less  and  less,  till  it 
scarce  exists — those  halcyon  times  when  all  is  rest  round  j 
about  us,  because  he  who  is  our  rest  enables  us  to  lean  upon 
his  bosom  and  to  feel  his  heart  of  love  beating  true  to  us. 

I  ask  you,  0  my  brethren,  therefore,  as  though  you  were  ' 
quite  alone  in  your  own  chamber,  to  pray  for  that  frame  of 
mind  which  is  suitable  to  the  subject,  and  to  pray  for  me 
that  I  may  be  placed  in  that  condition  of  heart  which  shall 
best  enable  me  to  speak  upon  it.    We  need  our  thoughts  to 
be  focused  before  they  can  reveal  to  us  the  great  sight  before 
us.    Get  to  the  place  where  Mary  sat  at  Jesus'  feet,  and  j 
then  will  this  text  sound  like  music  in  your  ears.  Without 
any  accompaniment  of  exposition  from  me,  it  will  have  all  . 
heaven's  music  in  it ;  "We  are  members  of  his  body,  of  his 
flesh,  and  of  his  bones."    Seven  fold  will  be  the  happiness  j 
of  the  spirit  which  knows  how  to  sit  down  and  to  taste  of  > 
the  marrow  and  the  fatness,  to  drink  of  the  "wine  on  the  ; 
lees  well  refined,"  which  are  to  be  found  in  this  inspired 
declaration. 

Ere  I  preach  upon  it,  there  is  one  thing  which  it  is  ne-  j 
cessary  for  us  to  do.    They  have  a  way  in  Scotland,  before  j 
the  communion,  of  "  fencing  the  tables  ; "  that  is  to  say, 
warning  all  those  who  have  no  right  to  come  to  the  table  ] 
to  avoid  the  sin  of  unlawful  intrusion,  and  so  of  eating  and 
drinking   condemnation  unto  themselves.    They  help  the 
hearers  to  self-examination,  lest  they  should  come  thought- 
lessly and  participate  in  that  which  does  not  belong  to  i 
them.    Now,  my  text  is  like  a  table  of  communion  richly 
loaded,  and  far  hence  be  ye  to  whom  it  does  not  belong, 
except  ye  learn  the  sacred  way  of  coming  in  by  the  door  into  J 
this  sheepfold,  where  the  pasture  is  so  rich  and  green.  If 
ye  come  by  Christ  £he  way,  come  and  welcome ;  if  ye  rest 
in  him,  if  his  dear  wounds  are  the  fountains  of  your  life,  and 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


11 


his  atoning  sacrifice  is  your  soul's  only  peace,  come  and  wel- 
come ;  for  of  yon,  and  such  as  you,  and  all  of  us  who  are 
trusting  in  Jesus,  it  may  be  truly  said,  "  We  are  members 
of  his  body,  of  his  flesh,  and  of  his  bones."  But  if  not 
believers  in  him,  this  heavenly  verse  has  nothing  to  do  with 
you.  It  is  "the  children's  bread;"  it  belongs  only  to  the 
children.  It  is  Israel's  manna  ;  it  falls  for  Israel.  It  is  the 
stream  which  leaps  from  Israel's  smitten  rock,  and  flows  neither 
for  Edom,  nor  for  Amalek,  but  for  the  chosen  seed  alone. 

Look  back,  then,  to  the  beginning  of  the  epistle,  and 
see  of  whom  the  apostle  was  speaking  when  he  said  "ice." 
This  little  word  "  we"  is  like  the  door  of  Xoah's  ark,  it  shuts 
out  and  shuts  in.    Does  it  shut  us  out  or  in  ? 

Now,  the  apostle  wrote  his  epistle  to  those  of  whom  he 
said,  "  Blessed  be  the  God  and  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  who  hath  blessed  us  with  all  spiritual  blessings  in 
heavenly  places  in  Christ,  according  as  he  hath  chosen  us  in 
him  before  the  foundation*  of  the  world,  that  we  should  be 
holy  and  without  blame  before  him  in  love."  Answer  thou 
this  question,  thou  who  wouldst  enjoy  this  text,  Hast  thou 
made  thy  calling  and  election  sure  ?  Has  that  matter  ever 
been  decided  in  thy  spirit  after  honest  search  and  inquiry 
into  the  grounds  of  thy  confidence  ?  Hast  thou  been  led  to 
choose  thy  Cod,  for  if  so  thy  Cod  had  long  ago  chosen  thee, 
and  that  matter  is  ascertained  beyond  all  question,  and  Qut 
of  it  springs  the  undoubted  assurance  that  you  are  one  with 
him,  since  of  all  whom  he  has  chosen  it  is  true,  "  We  are 
members  of  his  body,  of  his  flesh,  and  of  his  bones." 

The  apostolic  description  is  before  you,  I  pray  you  read 
on  :  "  Having  predestinated  us  into  the  adoption  of  children 
by  Jesus  Christ  to  himself,  according  to  the  good  pleasure  of 
his  will."  Knowest  thou  anything  about  adoption  ?  Hast 
thou  been  taken  out  of  the  family  of  Satan  and  enrolled  in 
the  family  of  Cod  ?  Hast  thou  the  Spirit  of  adoption  in 
thee  ?   Does  thy  soul  cry  "  Abba,  Father,"  at  the  very 


12 


THE  MATCHLESS"  MYSTEKY. 


thought  of  God  ?  Art  thou  an  imitator  of  God  as  a  dear 
child  ?  Dost  thou  feel  that  thy  nature  has  been  renewed,  f 
so  that,  whereas  thou  wast  a  child  of  wrath,  even  as  others, 
thou  hast  now  become  a  child  of  God  ?  Judge,  I  pray  thee, 
and  discern  concerning  these  things,  for  on  thine  answer  to 
this  question  depends  thy  condition  before  God,  thy  union 
with  Christ,  or  thy  separateness  from  him. 

Note,  still,  the  apostle's  words  as  you  read  on,  4 'To  the 
praise  of  the  glory  of  his  grace,  wherein  he  has  made  us  ac- 
cepted in  the  beloved."  Dear  hearer,  dost  thou  know  the 
meaning  of  those  last  words,  "  Accepted  in  the  beloved  "  ? 
Thou  canst  never  be  accepted  in  thyself  ;  thou  art  sinful, 
and  undone,  and  unworthy ;  but  hast  thou  come  and  cast 
thyself  upon  the  work,  the  blood  and  the  righteousness  of 
Jesus,  and  art  thou  therefore  accepted,  "  Accepted  in  the 
beloved  "  ?  Hast  thou  ever  enjoyed  a  sense  of  acceptance, 
so  that  thou  couldst  draw  near  to  God,  as  no  longer  a  ser- 
vant beneath  the  curse,  but  a  so*  beneath  the  blessing  ?  If 
so,  come  and  welcome  to  the  text :  it  is  all  thine  own. 

But  note  the  next  verse  : — "  In  whom  we  have  redemp- 
tion through  his  blood."  0  dear  hearers  do  you  know  the 
blood  ?  I  do  not  care  what  else  you  know,  if  you  do  not 
know  the  blood  ;  nor  do  I  much  mind  what  else  you  do  not 
know.  You  may  differ  very  widely  in  doctrine  from  some  of 
the  truths  which  I  think  I  have  learned  from  the  word  of 
God,  but  do  you  know  the  blood  ?  Were  you  ever  washed  in 
it  ?  Have  you  seen  it  sprinkled  over-head  and  on  the  side- 
posts  of  the  house  wherein  you  dwell,  so  that  the  destroying 
angel  passes  you  by  ?  Is  the  blood  of  Christ  the  life-blood 
of  your  hope  ?  God  save  me  from  preaching,  and  you  from 
believing  in  a  bloodless  theology.  It  is  a  dead  theology,  j 
Take  Christ  away,  take  the  atonement  by  a  substitutionary 
sacrifice  away,  and  what  is  there  left  ?  But,  oh,  if  we  in  | 
very  deed  have  redemption  through  his  blood,  then  we  are  \ 
"  members  of  his  body,  of  his  flesh,  and  of  his  bones." 


THE  MATCfiLESS  MYSTERY. 


13 


The  apostle  adds,  "  The  forgiveness  of  sins,  according  to 
the  riches  of  his  grace."  "And  here,  again,  I  press  home  the 
question  upon  the  consciences  of  the  members  of  this  church, 
and  upon  the  members  of  every  professing  church  of  Christ 
— Have  you  tasted  forgiveness  ?  Have  you  felt  the  burden 
of  sin  ?  Have  you  gone  with  that  burden  to  the  foot  of  the 
cross?  Has  the  Heavenly  Father  ever  said  to  you,  "Thy 
sins  are  forgiven  thee  "  ?  Do  you  believe  in  the  forgiveness 
of  sins,  and  that  in  reference  to  yourselves  ?  Oh,  do  not  be 
satisfied  unless  you  do.  Do  not  be  put  off  with  a  bare  hope 
that  perhaps  your  sin  is  forgiven  you,  but  struggle  after  that 
blessed  full  assurance  which  is  able  to  say — 

"  Ob,  bow  sweet  to  view  tbe  flowing 
Of  my  Saviour's  precious  blood, 
Witb  divine  assurance  knowing 
He  bus  made  my  peace  witb  God!" 

And  if  you  do  so  know,  possess,  and  enjoy  the  forgiveness  of 
sins,  then  are  you  "  members  of  his  body,  of  his  flesh,  and 
of  his  bones." 

Oh,  how  this  last  sentence  concerning  pardon  and  rich 
grace  seems  to  cheer  my  soul !  If  none  might  come  but 
those  who  never  sinned,  my  guilty  soul  could  never  venture 
near  the  Lord.  If  none  might  come  but  those  who  have 
committed  little  sin,  then  must  I  be  debarred.  But  it  is 
P  the  forgiveness  of  sins  "  on  a  grand  scale.  Let  me  read 
the  words  :  "  The  forgiveness  of  sins,  according  to  the  riches 
of  his  grace."  So  it  is  great  forgiveness,  the  forgiveness  of 
great  sin,  because  of  great  love.  0  beloved  hearer,  great 
sinner  as  you  have  been,  yet  if  you  are  "  accepted  in  the 
Beloved,"  and  have  "redemption  through  his  blood,"  then 
all  that  is  in  the  text  belongs  to  you;  so  I  will  keep  you 
waiting  in  the  vestibule  no  longer,  but  set  the  door  wide 
open,  saying,  "  Come  in,  thou  blessed  of  the  Lord.  Where- 
fore standest  thou  without  ? "  I  pray  the  Holy  Ghost  to 
help  you  to  come  into  this  high  festival,  give  you  a  sacred 


14 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


appetite,  and  enable  you  now  to  appreciate  the  extraordinary 
sweetness  of  the  words  before  us. 

First,  I  shall  try  and  expound — and  it  must  be  but  feebly — 
what  the  text  means,  and  secondly,  what  the  text  secures. 

L  First,  what  does  the  text  mean  ?  "  We  are  mem- 
bers of  his  body,  of  his  flesh,  and  of  his  bones."  Read  it  in 
the  light  of  the  second  chapter  of  the  book  of  Genesis,  for  it 
is  evident  that  there  is  a  distinct  allusion  to  the  creation  of 
Eve.  The  very  words  of  Adam  are  quoted,  and  we  are 
mentally  conducted  to  that  scene  in  the  garden  of  Eden 
when  the  first  man  gazed  upon  the  first  woman,  created  to 
be  his  dear  companion  and  helpmeet.  What  did  Adam  mean 
when  he  used  these  words  ?  for  the  great  husband  of  our 
souls  must  mean  the  same,  only  in  a  more  spiritual  and 
emphatic  sense. 

And,  first,  there  was  meant  here  similarity  of  nature. 
Adam  looked  at  Eve,  and  he  did  not  regard  her  as  a  stranger, 
as  some  creature  of  different  genus  and  nature  ;  "  but  he 
said,  "  She  is  bone  of  my  bones,  and  flesh  of  my  flesh."  He 
meant  that  she  was  of  the  same  race,  a  participant  in  the 
same  nature  :  he  recognized  her  as  a  being  of  the  same  order 
as  himself.  Now,  that  is  a  low  meaning  of  the  text,  but  it 
is  one  meaning.  Brethren,  beloved,  think  of  this  truth  for 
a  moment.  Jesus,  the  son  of  G-od,  counted  it  not  robbery  to 
be  equal  with  God.  "  Without  him  was  not  anything  made 
that  was  made."  He  is  "very  God  of  very  God."  Yet  he 
deigned  for  love  of  us  to  take  upon  himself  our  nature,  and 
he  did  it  completely,  so  that  he  assumed  the  whole  of  human 
nature,  apart  from  its  sin ;  and  in  that  respect  we  may  say 
of  ourselves — that  we  are  "  bone  of  his  bone,  and  flesh  of  his 
flesh."  The  very  nature  which  we  wear  on  earth  Christ 
Jesus  once  carried  about  among  us,  and  at  last  carried  aloft 
to  heaven.  You  believe  in  his  Godhead,  take  heed  never  to 
commingle  his  Godhead  and  his  humanity.  Remember,  Christ 
was  not  a  deified  man,  neither  was  he  a  humanized  God. 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


15 


He  was  perfectly  God,  and  at  the  same  time  perfectly  man, 
made  like  unto  his  brethren  in  all  things.  Dwell  for  a 
moment  upon  this  truth,  for  the  text  sets  it  forth.  Born  of 
a  human  mother,  and  swaddled  like  another  child,  he  was 
from  his  birth  as  perfectly  human  even  as  you  are.  In 
nothing  did  he  differ  from  you  except  in  this,  that  he  never 
wandered  from  God  and  broke  his  commands,  and  he  was 
not  denied  with  that  hereditary  taint  of  original  sin  which 
dwelleth  in  you  by  nature.  The  like  depressions  to  those 
which  sadden  your  spirit  he  knew  ;  the  temptations  of  your 
nature  assailed  him  ;  men  and  devils  both  sought  to  influence 
him.  He  was  amenable  to  all  the  external  physical  arrange- 
ments of  the  globe.  On  him  the  shower  pelted  down,  and 
wetted  his  garments  ;  and  on  him  the  burning  sun  poured 
forth  its  undiminished  heat.  Upon  his  sacred  person  on  the 
lone  mountain-side,  the  dews  descended  until  his  head  was  wet 
with  them,  and  his  locks  with  the  drops  of  the  night.  For 
him  there  were  poverty,  and  hunger,  and  thirst,  reproach, 
slander,  and  treachery.  For  him  the  sea  tossed  the  barque 
as  it  will  for  you  ;  and  for  him  the  land  yielded  thorn  and 
thistle,  as  it  does  to  you.  He  suffered,  he  ate,  he  toiled, 
he  rested,  he  wept,  and  he  rejoiced,  even  as  you  do,  sin  alone 
excepted.  A  real  kinsman  was  he,  not  in  fiction,  but  in  sub- 
stantial reality.  Are  you  man  ?  Jesus  was  a  man.  Do  not 
doubt  it.  Do  not  look  at  your  Lord  as  standing  there  on 
a  pinnacle  of  superior  nature,  where  you  cannot  come  near 
him,  but  view  him  as  your  own  flesh  and  blood,  "a  brother 
born  for  adversity."  For  so  he  is.  He  comes  to  you  and 
says,  "  Handle  me  and  see.  A  spirit  hath  not  flesh  and 
!  bones  as  you  see  me  have."  He  invites  your  faith  to  look 
at  the  prints  of  the  nails,  and  the  scar  of  the  spear-thrust. 
Did  he  not,  after  he  had  risen  from  the  dead,  prove  his  true 
humanity  by  eating  a  piece  of  a  broiled  fish  and  of  a  honey- 
comb ?  And  that  same  humanity  has  gone  to  heaven.  The 
clouds  received  it  out  of  our  sight,  but  it  is  there. 


16 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


"  A  man  there  was,  a  real  man, 
Who  once  on  Calvary  died  ; 
And  streams  of  blood  and  water  ran 
Down  from  his  wounded  side." 

That  same  blest  man  exalted  sits  high  on  his  Father's  throne. 
Believe  this  and  you  will  see  how  he  is  bone  of  your  bone, 
and  flesh  of  your  flesh. 

And  then  recollect  that,  as  his  nature  is  as  yours,  so 
in  another  sense,  he  has  made  your  nature  as  his  ;  for  you 
are  born  again,  and  gifted  with  a  higher  life.  You  were 
carnal ;  he  has  now  made  you  spiritual.  You  could  not 
drink  of  his  cup,  or  be  baptized  with  his  baptism,  till  hisj 
Spirit  had  come  upon  you.  But  now  ye  are  made  "par-j 
takers  of  the  divine  nature," — strong  words,  but  scriptural  I 
"partakers  of  the  divine  nature,  having  escaped  the  corrup- 
tion that  is  in  the  world  through  lust."  "For  as  ye  have 
borne  the  image  of  the  earthy  Adam,  ye  shall  also  bear  the 
heavenly."  Now  you,  as  spiritual  men,  cry  out  to  God  in] 
prayer,  and  so  did  he  when  he  was  here.  Now  you  are  in  an] 
agony  as  you  strive  with  God,  and  so  was  he,  but  the  bloody 
sweat  is  a  part  of  his  substitutionary  work,  in  which  he  trod 
the  wine-press  alone.  His  meat  and  drink  was  to  do  the  will) 
of  him  that  sent  him,  and  it  is  yours,  I  trust ;  at  any  rate,B 
it  should  be  if  you  are  your  Lord's.  He  lived  for  God  ;ll 
he  lived  and  died  for  love  of  men ;  and  that  same  love  off 
God  and  man,  though  in  a  feebler  measure,  burns  within! 
your  heart.  You  are,  therefore,  now  made  by  his  grace] 
to  participate  in  his  moral  and  spiritual  nature,  and  you 
will  never  be  satisfied  till  you  awake  in  his  likeness.  But  you 
will  awake  in  his  likeness,  so  that  when  he  sees  you  and  youl 
see  him,  then  shall  be  abundantly  manifested  to  you  that  you 
are  a  member  "  of  his  body,  of  his  flesh,  and  of  his  bones  :"  — 

"  Such  was  thy  grace,  that  for  our  sake 
Thou  didst  from  heaven  come  down, 
Thou  didst  of  flesh  and  blood  partake, 
In  all  our  sorrows  one. 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


17 


"Ascended  now,  in  glory  bright, 
Still  ONE  with  us  thou  art ; 
Nor  life,  nor  death,  nor  depth,  nor  height, 
Thy  saints  and  thee  can  part. 

"  Oh,  teach  us,  Lord,  to  know  and  own 
This  wondrous  mystery, 
That  thou  with  us  art  truly  ONE. 
And  we  are  one  with  thee  ! 

"  Soon,  soon  shall  come  that  glorious  day, 
When  seated  on  thy  throne, 
Thou  shalt  to  wondering  worlds  display, 
That  thou  with  us  art  one  ! " 

Similarity  of  nature,  then,  is  the  first  meaning  of  the  text. 

Eegard,  I  pray  you,  brethren,  with  much  solemn  atten- 
tion, a  higher  step  of  the  ladder.  It  signifies  intimate  rela- 
tionship, for  I  hardly  think  that  Adam  would  have  said 
quite  so  strongly,  "  She  is  bone  of  my  bones,  and  flesh  of  my 
flesh,"  if  he  had  thought  that  the  woman  would  disappear, 
or  would  become  the  wife  of  another.  It  was  because  she 
was  to  be  his  helpmeet,  and  they  were  to  be  joined  together 
in  bonds  of  the  most  intimate  communion,  that  therefore  he 
said,  "  Not  only  is  she  of  the  same  bone  and  flesh  as  I  am, 
but  she  is  bone  of  my  bones,  and  flesh  of  my  flesh.  She 
is' related  to  me."  What  a  near  and  loving  relationship 
marriage  has  bestowed  upon  us  !  It  is  a  blessing  for  which 
good  men  dwelling  with  affectionate  wives  praise  God  every 
day  they  live.  Marriage  and  the  Sabbath  are  the  two  choice 
boons  of  primeval  love  that  have  come  down  to  us  from 
Paradise,  the  one  to  bless  our  outer  and  the  other  our  inner 
life.  Oh,  the  joy,  the  true,  pure,  elevated  peace  and  joy 
which  many  of  us  have  received  through  that  divinely  or- 
dained relationship  !  We  cannot  but  bless  God  every  time 
we  repeat  the  dear  names  of  those  who  are  now  parts  of  our- 
selves. Marriage  creates  a  relationship  which  ends  only 
when  death  doth  us  part.    It  may  be  dissolved.    Alas,  sin 


18 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


enters  even  here  !  A  dark  crime  may  be  committed,  but, 
with  the  exception  of  that,  it  is  for  life — for  better,  for 
worse  ;  only  the  mortal  stroke  can  part.  Now  think  of  it. 
As  is  your  relation,  0  woman,  to  your  husband,  and  as  is 
your  relation,  0  man,  to  your  wife,  such  is  the  relation  which 
exists  between  you,  as  a  believer  in  Jesus,  and  Christ  Jesus 
your  Lord.  It  is  the  nearest,  dearest,  closest,  most  intense, 
and  most  enduring  relationship  that  can  be  imagined.  I 
love  and  bless  God  for  ever  declaring  that  his  relationship  to 
us  may  be  likened  to  that  of  a  father  or  a  mother  to  a  child. 
Did  you  ever  hear  those  words  without  tears — (I  think  I 
never  did) — "  Can  a  woman  forget  her  sucking  child,  that 
she  should  not  have  compassion  on  the  son  of  her  womb  ?  Yea, 
they  may  forget ;  yet  will  not  I  forget  thee."  And  yet  there 
is  a  closer  intimacy,  somehow  in  the  relationship  which  is  de- 
clared in  the  text,  because  there  is  a  kind  of  equality  between 
the  married  ones,  tempered  by  that  headship  of  which  the 
apostle  speaks,  and  which  we  delight  to  recognize  in  our 
beloved  Lord  toward  ourselves.  The  child  cannot,  while  it 
is  yet  a  babe,  at  any  rate,  enter  into  its  mother's  feelings, 
it  is  far  below  the  mpther  ;  but  the  wife  communes  with 
her  husband  ;  she  is  lifted  up  to  his  level ;  she  is  made  a  par- 
taker of  his  cares  and  sorrows,  of  his  joys  and  his  successes, 
and  the  intimacy  arising  out  of  their  conjugal  union  is  of 
the  closest  kind.  Now — again  I  say  it,  and  I  cannot  open  it 
up  further  than  to  say  it — such  is  the  relationship  between 
the  believer's  soul  and  the  Lord  Jesus.  Well  did  the  spouse 
break  out  with  the  rapturous  language,  which  forms  the  first 
words  of  the  song — "  Let  him  kiss  me  with  the  kisses  of  his 
mouth,  for  his  love  is  better  than  wine,"  as  if  she  did  not  need 
to  describe  her  relationship,  but  longed  to  enjoy  the  sweets 
of  it.  My  brother,  I  pray  you  may  so  enjoy  it ;  that  now  if 
you  be  poor  in  this  world,  if  you  be  an  orphan,  if  you  be 
almost  alone  one  in  this  great  city,  you  may  feel,  "No  longer 
am  I  an  orphan,  no  longer  am  I  alone.    My  Maker  is  my 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


19 


husband.  The  Lord  of  Hosts  is  his  name,  and  my  redeemer 
the  mighty  One  of  Israel ;  and  from  this  day  forth  will  I 
rejoice  that  I  am  bone  of  his  bones,  and  flesh  of  his  flesh." 
Similarity  of  nature,  and  closeness  of  relationship,  are  evi- 
dently in  the  text. 

But  I  clearly  see  another  and  deeper  meaning.  It  meant 
from  Adam's  lips,  mysterious  extraction.  I  will  not  make 
bold  to  say  that  he  knew  what  had  occurred  to  him  in  his 
sleep.  He  might  not  have  known  all,  but  he  seems  to  have 
had  a  mystic  enlightenment  which  made  him  guess  what  had 
occurred — at  least  the  words  seem  to  me  to  have  that  ring  iu 
them.  "  She  is  bone  of  my  bones  " — for  a  bone  had  been 
taken  from  him,  "  and  flesh  of  my  flesh,"  for  out  of  him  had 
she  been  taken.  He  seems  to  have  known  that  somehow  or 
other  she  sprang  of  him.  Whether  he  knew  it  or  not,  Christ 
jknows  right  well  the  origin  of  his  spouse.  He  knew  where 
|his  church  came  from.  There  is  the  mark  in  his  side 
i still  :  there  is  the  memorial  in  the  palms  of  his  hands  and 
on  his  feet.  Whence  came  this  new  Eve,  this  new  mother 
of  all  living  ?  Whence  came  this  spouse  of  the  second 
Adam  ?  She  came  of  the  second  Adam.  She  was  taken 
from  his  side,  full  near  his  heart.  Have  you  never  read, 
"Except  a  corn  of  wheat  fall  into  the.  ground  and  die,  it 
abideth  alone  ;  but  if  it  die,  it  bringeth  forth  much  fruit"  ? 
Had  Jesus  never  died,  he  would  have  been  made  to  abide 
alone  as  to  any  who  could  be  help-meets  for  him,  and 
could  enter  into  fellowship  with  him ;  but,  inasmuch  as  he 
has  died,  he  has  brought  forth  much  fruit,  and  his  church 
has  sprung  from  him,  and  in  that  sense  she  is  bone  of  his 
bones,  and  flesh  of  his  flesh.  What  mean  I  by  the  church  ? 
says  one.  I  mean  by  the  church  all  the  people  of  God,  all  the 
redeemed,  all  believers,  as  I  explained  at  the  commencement. 
Think  you  I  mean  by  the  church  the  harlot  of  the  seven 
hills  ?  God  forbid  that  Christ  should  have  fellowship  with 
her !    How  can  he  so  much  as  look  upon  her  except  with 


20 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


horror  ?  Means  be  by  the  church  the  politically  supported: 
corporation  that  men  call  a  church  now-a-days  ?  .Nay,  but 
the  spiritual,  the  quickened,  the  living,  the  believing,  the 
holy  people,  wherefore  they  may  be,  or  whatever  name  they 

may  be  called.    These  are  they  that  sprang  out  of  Christ,  « 

even  as  Levi  from  the  loins  of  Abraham.    They  live  because  « 

they  receive  life  from  him,  and  at  this  day  they  are  dead  in  \{ 
themselves,  and  their  life  is  hid  with  Christ  in  God.    So  the 

text  leads  us  to  a  deep  meditation  as  to  mysterious  extraction,  j  fa 

But  I  find  the  time  goes  too  swiftly  for  me,  and  I  must  es 

observe  next  that  I  am  sure  that  in  the  text  there  is  more  2I 

than  this.    There  is,  in  the  fourth  place,  loving  possession..,,  0I 

He  said,  "  She  is  bone  of  my  bones,  and  flesh  of  my  flesh  ; "  '  \\ 

he  felt  she  was  his  own,  and  belonged  solely  to  him.    Of  any-  | 

thing  there  might  be  in  the  garden,  Adam  was  but  owner  in  |, 

the  second  degree  ;  but  when  he  saw  her,  he  felt  she  was  all  his  5j 

own.    By  bonds  and  ties  which  did  not  admit  of  dispute,  his  cj 

bone  and  his  flesh  was  she.    Now,  beloved,  at  this  moment  let  p 

this  thought  dance  through  your  soul  ;  you  belong  to  Jesus,  T 

altogether  you  belong  to  Jesus.    Let  not  your  love  go  forth  to  j( 

earthly  things,  so  soiled  and  dim  ;  but  send  it  all  away,  up  s 

to  him  to  whom  you  belong  ;  aye,  send  it  all  to  him.    "  Set  \ 

not  your  affection  upon  things  on  the  earth,"  but  set  it  all  | 

upon  thing's  above,  for  you  belong  wholly  to  your  Lord.    All  c 

that  there  is  of  your  spirit,  soul,  and  body,  the  triple  king-  0 

dom  of  your  nature,  Christ  has  purchased  by  his  blood.    It  l 

were  a  dark  thought  to  cross  a  man's  mind,  that  his  spouse  ] 

belonged  in  part  to  some  other.    It  could  not  be.    And  will  j 

you  provoke  your  Lord  to  jealousy  ?    Will  you  suffer  it  to  , 
seem  so  by  your  actions  or  your  words  ?    Nay,  rather  say 
to-night  anew, 

"  'Tis  done,  the  great  transaction's  done  ; 
I  am  my  Lord's,  and  he  is  mine. 
He  drew  me,  and  I  followed  on, 
Charmed  to  confess  the  voice  divine. 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


21 


"  High  heaven,  that  heard  the  solemn  vow, 
That  vow  renewed  shall  daily  hear, 
Till  in  life's  latest  hour  I  bow, 
And  bless  in  death  a  bond  so  dear." 

"For  ye  are  not  your  own,  ye  are  bought  with  a  price." 
I  We  are  members  of  his  body,  of  his  flesh,  and  of  his 
bones."    We  belong  entirely  unto  him. 

And  to  close  this  exposition — this  skimming  of  the  sur- 
face, rather — there  is  one  more  matter,  and  this  is  the  very 
essence  of  the  meaning.  A  vital  union  exists  between  us 
and  Christ.  When  the  apostle  was  showing  that  we  were 
one  with  Christ,  as  the  wife  is  with  the  husband,  he  felt 
bhat  the  metaphor,  though  it  set  forth  much,  did  not  set 
forth  all.  He  would  have  us  know  that  we  are  more  easily 
knit  to  Jesus  than  is  a  woman  to  her  husband  :  for  they  are, 
after  all,  separate  individualities,  and  they  may  act,  and  too 
often  do  so,  far  too  distinctly  for  themselves.  But  here  he 
puts  it,  "We  are  members  of  his  body."  Now,  here  is  a 
vital  union,  the  closest  imaginable.  It  is  not  unity  ;  it  is 
identity.  It  is  more  than  being  joined  to  ;  it  is  being  made 
a,  part  of,  and  an  essential  part  of  the  whole.  Do  you  think 
[  strain  the  text,  and  go  beyond  the  fact  ?  Listen  to  this 
word.  The  apostle,  in  speaking  of  the  church,  said,  con- 
cerning Christ,  that  the  church  was  his  body,  "  the  fulness 
)f  him  that  filleth  all  in  all."  And  note  the  majesty  of  that 
speech — that  the  church  should  be  the  fulness  of  Christ. 
Now,  Christ,  without  his  fulness,  is  evidently  not  full ;  he 
must  have  his  people  ;  they  are  essential  to  him.  The  idea 
)f  a  Saviour  is  lost,  apart  from  the  saved.  He  is  a  head  with- 
out a  body  if  there  be  no  members.  What  without  his  peo- 
ple is  Jesus  but  a  king  without  subjects,  and  a  shepherd  with- 
out a  flock  ?  It  is  essential  to  any  true  thought  of  Christ, 
bhat  you  think  of  his  people.  They  must  come  in.  They 
are  one  with  him  in  every  true  view  of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord. 

How  we  are  one  with  him  !    Ah,  brethren,  much  might 


22  THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 

be  said,  but  I  fear  little  would  be  explained  by  words.  I 
want  you  to  feel  it,  and  to  be  comforted  by  the  fact  of  the 
vital  union  of  Jesus  and  his  saints.    Have  you  never  heard  j 
him  say  to  you — 

"  I  feel  at  my  heart  all  thy  sighs  and  thy  groans, 
For  thou  art  most  near  me,  my  flesh  and  my  hones. 
In  all  thy  distresses  thy  head  feels  the  pain, 
They  all  are  most  needful,  not  one  is  in  vain  ?  " 

Oh,  do  get  to  know  this,  you  tried  and  tempted  ones,  you  ] 

poor  poverty-stricken  people  of  God,  you  who  could  not  help  1 

coming  here  to-night,  wet  as  it  was,  because  you  must  have  1 
spiritual  meat,  you  were  so  hungry  after  your  Lord.  Oh,  do 
get  this  morsel  now,  and  feed  on  it.  You  are  one  with  him. 
You  were  "  buried  in  him  in  baptism  unto  death,"  wherein 
also  you  have  risen  with  him.  You  were  crucified  with  him 
upon  the  cross  ;  you  have  gone  up  into  heaven  with  him,  for 

he  has  raised  us  up  together,  and  made  us  sit  together  in  the  I 

heavenly  places  in  Christ  Jesus.    And  surely  you  shall  be  I 

actually  in  your  very  person  with  him  where  he  is,  that  you  t 

may  behold  his  glory.    You  are  one  with  him.  t 

Now,  tie  up  these  five  truths  like  five  choice  flowers  in  i 
a  nosegay.    Blend  them  like  sweet  spices,  and  let  them  be  a  |  i 

bundle  of  camphire  and  a  cluster  of  myrrh,  to  lie  all  night  t 

upon  your  bosom,  to  give  you  rest  and  to  sweeten  your  repose,  tl 

There  is  between  you  and  your  Lord  a  similarity  of  nature,  ii 

and  an  intimate  relationship  ;  you  have  a  mysterious  extrac-  k 

tion  from  him,  and  he  has  a  loving  possession  of  you,  and  ii 

a  vital  union  with  you.  t 

Come,  now,  we  must  only  have  a  few  minutes  to  catch  si 

some  of  the  juice  that  will  flow  out  of  these  clusters  of  e 
Eshcol  while  we  tread  them  for  a  moment,  just  to  show 

what  the  wines  of  the  kingdom  are  like.    What  does  the  i 

TEXT  SECURE  ?  I 

First,  it  seems  to  me,  that  the  text  secures  the  eternal  1 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


23 


safety  of  every  one  who  is  one  with  Christ.  You  know  the 
figure  we  often  use,  that  when  a  man's  head  is  above  water 
you  cannot  drown  his  feet ;  and  as  long  as  my  Head  is  in 
glory,  though  I  be  but  the  sole  of  his  foot,  and  only  worthy 
to  be  trodden  in  the  mire,  how  can  ye  drown  me  ?  Is  it  not 
written,  "  Because  I  live  ye  shall  live  also  " — all  of  you  who 
are  one  with  him  ?  The  idea  of  Christ  losing  members 
of  his  body  is  to  me  grotesque,  and  at  the  same  time  ghastly. 
Does  he  change  his  members  like  some  aquatic  creatures 
which  shoot  their  limbs  and  get  fresh  joints  ?  I  trow  it 
is  not  so  with  Christ,  the  second  Adam.  Will  he  lose  his 
members  ?    Can  he  lose  one  member  ?   Then  can  he  lose  all  ? 

"  If  ever  it  should  come  to  pass 
That  sheep  of  Christ  could  fall  away, 
My  fickle,  feeble  soul,  alas, 
Would  fall  a  thousand  times  a  day." 

But  herein  lies  our  safety ;  ' '  I  give  unto  my  sheep  eternal 
life,  and  they  shall  never  perish  ;  neither  shall  any  pluck 
them  out  of  my  hand."  I  know  that  some  have  perverted 
this  blessed  truth  into  the  wicked  lie  that  the  Christian  man 
may  live  as  he  likes,  and  yet  be  safe.  No  such  doctrine 
is  to  be  found  between  the  covers  of  that  book  ;  the  doc- 
trine of  the  safety  of  the  saints  is  far  other  than  that.  It  is 
that  the  renewed  man  shall  live  as  God  likes,  shall  persevere 
in  holiness  and  hold  on  his  way,  until  he  arrives  at  the 
blessed  perfection  of  his  Lord,  changing  from  glory  to  glory 
into  that  image  which  he  shall  reach  and  possess  forever.  I 
see — I  pity  those  who  do  not  see  it,  but  I  will  not  blame — I 
see,  I  think,  strong  reason  for  believing  in  the  security  of 
every  soul  which  is  one  with  Christ. 

But,  next,  I  see  here  a  very  sweet  thought.  If  I  am  one 
with  Christ,  then  I  certainly  enjoy,  above  all  things,  his  love. 
Last  Saturday  week  in  the  evening  I  was  trying  to  turn  over 
this  text  to  preach  to  you  from  it  in  the  morning ;  but  I 


24 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


was  wrung  with  bitter  pains  which  made  me  feel  that  I 
should  not  preach,  and  kept  me  wearily  waiting  through  the 
night  watches.  But  do  you  know  what  comforted  me  very 
much  about  the  text  ?  It  was  that  sentence  which  is  a  near 
neighbor  of  it  ;  "No  man  ever  yet  hated  his  own  flesh."  I 
seized  upon  that,  and  my  sad  heart  cried  out.  "  Surely  the 
Man  Christ  Jesus  never  yet  hated  his  own  flesh."  If  we  are 
members  of  his  body,  of  his  flesh,  and  of  his  bones,  he  may 
chasten,  he  may  correct,  and  lay  on  heavy  strokes,  and  give 
sharp  twinges,  and  make  us  cry  out ;  he  may  even  thrust  us 
in  the  fire,  and  heat  the  furnace  seven  times  hotter  ;  but  he 
never  can  neglect  and  abhor  his  own  flesh.  ■  Still  is  there 
love  in  his  heart.  I  hate  no  part  of  my  body,  not  even  when  it 
aches.  I  hate  it  not,  but  love  it  still ;  it  is  a  part  of  myself  ; 
and  so  doth  Jesus  love  his  people.  And  you,  poor  sinners, 
who  feel  that  you  are  not  worthy  to  be  called  his  people, 
nevertheless  his  love  goes  out  to  you,  despite  your  imperfec- 
tions. Having  loved  his  own,  which  were  in  the  world, 
he  loved  them  to  the  end,  and  he  has  left  it  upon  record, 
"  As  my  father  hath  loved  me,  even  so  have  I  loved  you. 
Continue  ye  in  my  love." 

Another  most  enchanting  thought  also  arises  from  our 
subject.    The  apostle  goes  on  to  say,  "No  man  ever  yetl 
hated  his  own  flesh,  but  nourisheth  and  cherisheth  it,  even.; 
as  the  Lord  the  church."    Oh,  those  two  words,  "  nourish- 
eth it."    Are  you  living  in  a  district  where  you  do  not  get 
the  gospel  ?    Well,  then,  go  to  the  gospel's  Lord  and  say 
to  him,  "Lord,  hate  not  thine  own  flesh,  but  nourish  me." 
Have  you  been  for  a  while  without  visits  from  Christ  ?  have! 
you  lost  the  light  of  his  countenance  ?    Do  not  be  satisfied 
with  nourishing  ;  go  further  and  plead  for  cherishing.  Ask 
for  those  love  tokens,  for  those  gentle  words,  for  those  secret 
blandishments,  known  to  saints,  and  to  none  but  saints,  for,); 
"the  secret  of  the  Lord  is  with  them  that  fear  him,  and  he 
will  show  them  his  covenant."    Go  and  ask  for  both  these 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


25 


forms  of  love,  and  you  shall  be  nourished  and  cherished. 
The  good  husband  does  not  merely  bring  so  much  bread  and 
meat  into  the  house  and  fling  it  down,  saying,  "  There,  that 
will  nourish  you."  Oh,  not  so,  but  there  are  tender  words 
and  kindly  acts,  by  which  he  cherishes  as  well  as  nourishes. 
And  your  Lord  will  not  only  give  you  bread  to  eat  which  the 
world  knows  not  of,  but  he  will  give  it  you  according  to  his 
loving  kindness  and  the  multitude  of  his  tender  mercies  : 
for  ne  maketh  us  to  lie  down  in  green  pastures,  he  leadeth 
us  beside  the  still  waters,  gently  guiding  as  a  shepherd 
conducts  his  flock.  Eejoice,  then,  that  your  nourishing  and 
your  cherishing  are  secure. 

I  will  not  keep  you  longer  when  I  have  said  thus  much. 
If  we  are  members  of  his  body,  of  his  flesh,  and  of  his  bones, 
then  he  will  one  day  present  us  to  himself,  "  without  spot,  or 
wrinkle,  or  any  such  thing,"  for  the  whole  body  must  be 
so  presented.  Alas,  our  spots  are  many,  and  sadly  mar  our 
beauty  !  Brethren,  I  love  not  to  think  little  of  my  spots.  I 
wish  I  had  not  even  a  speck.  Alas,  our  wrinkles  !  Let 
us  not  talk  lightly  of  them.  It  is  most  sad  that  on  the 
Beloved's  darling  there  should  be  a  solitary  blot.  It  is  the 
worst  wrinkle  of  all  when  a*  man  does  not  see  his  own 
wrinkles,  and  when  he  does  not  mourn  over  them.  But 
spots  and  wrinkles  there  are.  I  hope  we  do  not  say,  "  Yes, 
they  are  there,"  and  then  add,  "And  they  must  be  there." 
No,  beloved,  they  ought  not  to  be  there  :  there  ought  to 
be  no  sin  in  us.  If  there  be  a  sin  which  ought  to  be  upon 
us,  why  it  is  clear  it  is  no  sin.  A  thing  that  ought  to  be 
is  not  a  sin.  If  we  served  our  Master  as  he  deserves  to  be 
served,  we  should  never  sin,  but  our  lives  would  be  perfect  ; 
and  therefore  it  is  our  daily  burden  that  the  spots  and 
wrinkles  still  will  show ;  and  this  is  our  consolation,  that 
he  will  one  day  present  us  to  himself,  holy  and  with- 
out blemish,  "not  having  spot  or  wrinkle,  or  any  such 
thing." 


S36 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


"  Oh,  glorious  hour,  oh,  blest  abode  ; 
I  shall  be  near  and  like  my  God, 
Nor  spot  nor  wrinkle  shall  remain, 
His  perfect  image  to  profane." 

It  will  be  a  blessed  thing  indeed  to  have  attained  to  this,  to 
wear  the  image  of  the  heavenly,  and  be  perfect  even  as  our 
Bridegroom  is  perfect. 

Then,  remember,  all  the  glory  Christ  has  we  shall  share 
in.  You  cannot  honor  a  warrior  who  returns  from  the 
wars,  and  say  to  him,  "  Great  general,  we  honor  your  head." 
Oh,  no,  he  who  fought  his  country's  battles,  and  won  the 
victory,  when  he  was  honored  was  altogether  honored  as  a 
man.  And  when  the  Master  at  the  last  shall  have  finished 
all  his  work,  and,  the  whole  battle  that  he  undertook  being 
finished,  and  the  victory  gained,  he  enters  perfectly  into  his 
joy,  we  shall  enter  into  the  joy  of  our  Lord.  Does  he  sit 
upon  a  throne  ?  He  has  said  we  shall  sit  upon  his  throne. 
Has  he  triumphed  ?  We  shall  bear  the  palm  branch,  too. 
Whatever  he  has  we  shall  share.  Are  we  not  heirs  of  God, 
joint  heirs  with  Jesus  Christ  ?  My  soul  feels  ready  to  leap 
right  away  from  this  body  at  the  thought  of  the  glory  that 
shall  be  revealed  in  us — not  in  Paul  and  Peter  only,  but  in 
us.  Poor  things,  poor  things,  that  struggle  hard  each  day 
with  infirmities  and  trials,  ye  shall  be  with  him  where  he  is, 
and  shall  behold  his  glory  forever.  "  So  shall  we  ever  be 
with  the  Lord.  Wherefore  comfort  one  another  with  these 
words." 

"<3ince  Christ  and  we  are  one, 
Why  should  we  doubt  or  fear  ? 
If  he  in  heaven  hath  fixed  his  throne, 
He'll  fix  his  members  there." 

In  this  spirit  come  ye  to  the  communion  table,  and  find 
your  Master  there.  But  oh,  if  you  are  not  resting  in  him, 
if  the  blood  was  never  upon  you,  you  are  condemned  already, 
because  you  have  not  believed  on  the  Son  of  God  ;  and  I  pray 


THE  MATCHLESS  MYSTERY. 


27 


that  your  bed  may  be  cold  and  hard  as  a  stone  to  you 
to-night,  and  your  eyes  may  forget  to  sleep,  and  your  heart 
may  know  no  rest  until  you  have  said,  "I  will  arise,  and  go 
to  my  Father,  and  will  say  unto  him,  Father,  I  have  sinned." 
Then  take  with  you  Jesus  as  a  mediator,  and  draw  nigh 
to  the  throne  of  grace.  Go,  plead  his  blood  and  merits,  and 
you  shall  live  ;  and  then  you,  too,  shall  be  able  to  join  with 
the  saints  who  say,  "  We  are  members  of  his  body,  of  his 
flesh,  and  of  his  bones."    Amen.  Amen. 


SERMON  tl. 


MAKROW  AND  FATNESS. 

Delivered  ok  Lord's-Day  Morning,  at  the  Metro- 
politan Tabernacle,  Newington. 

"  Then  went  King  David  in,  and  sat  before  the  Lord,  and  he  said, 
Who  am  I,  O  Lord  God  ?  and  what  is  my  house,  that  thou  hast  brought 
me  hitherto  ?  And  this  was  yet  a  small  thing  in  thy  sight,  O  Lord 
God  ;  but  thou  hast  spoken  also  of  thy  servant's  house  for  a  great 
while  to  come.  And  is  this  the  manner  of  man,  O  Lord  God  ?  And 
what  can  David  say  more  unto  thee  ?  for  thou,  Lord  God,  knowest  thy 
servant.  For  thy  word's  sake,  and  according  to  thy  own  heart,  hast 
thou  done  all  these  great  things,  to  make  thy  servant  know  them. 
Wherefore  thou  art  great,  O  Lord  God ;  for  there  is  none  like  thee, 
neither  is  there  any  God  beside  thee,  according  to  all  that  we  have 
heard  with  our  ears." — 2  Samuel  vii.  18-22. 

David  was  overwhelmed  with  the  mercy  of  God:  Nathan's 
message  was  too  much  for  him.  He  felt  emotions  in  his  bo- 
som which  he  could  not  express.  Like  a  wise  man,  he  went 
at  once,  while  under  the  impulse  of  gratitude,  into  the  place  of 
nearness  to  God.  It  was  not  every  one  who  might  go  in  and 
sit  before  the  Lord  as  he  did  ;  but  he  felt  he  had  a  special 
call  to  draw  near  unto  the  Most  High  :  and  there  he  sat  him 
down  in  the  posture  of  waiting  to  receive  the  fulfilment  of 
what  was  promised,  in  the  posture  of  rest,  as  one  who  had 
now  all  that  he  could  desire,  and  was  pressed  down  under 
the  weight  of  blessing.    Yet  the  psalmist's  sitting  was  also  a 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


29 


posture  of  worship,  and  surely  of  all  passages  of  Scripture, 
none  can  be  said  to  contain  more  true  adoration  than  that 
which  is  now  before  us.  The  king  sat,  however,  before  the 
Lord.  The  mercy  had  all  come  from  God,  and  therefore  to 
God  all  his  praise  be  offered.  His  soul  waited  only  upon  the 
Lord,  because  his  expectation  was  alone  from  him.  He  was 
conscious  of  being  in  the  sacred  presence,  and  he  sat  there, 
feeling  that  by  the  covenant  blessing  he  had  been  brought 
very  near,  and  his  spirit  exulted  in  that  nearness.  Brethren 
and  sisters  in  Christ,  the  mercies  which  God  has  shown  to  us 
are  as  great  as  those  which  he  manifested  to  his  servant 
David,  and  if  the  Spirit  of  God  has  opened  our  eyes  to  see 
and  understand  them  we  may  this  morning  ardently  wish  to 
do  precisely  what  David  did.  Let  us  have  boldness  to  enter 
into  the  nearest  possible  fellowship  with  God — yea,  let  us  go 
where  David  could  not  go,  within  the  veil,  and  there,  where 
Christ  has  opened  up  the  way  through  his  rent  body,  let  us 
sit  down  in  a  restful,  waiting,  happy  spirit,  and  give  full 
play  to  all  those  divine  emotions  which  ought  to  be  aroused 
by  reflecting  upon  the  loving  kindness  of  the  Lord.  I  have 
selected  this  subject  because  there  are  many  among  us  who 
have  lately  found  the  Saviour,  and  it  is  well  to  let  them  see 
the  happiness  which  belongs  to  them,  the  pleasures  and  the 
treasures  which  are  theirs  in  Christ  Jesus,  that  they  may 
render  unto  the  God  of  grace  the  glory  which  is  due  unto 
his  name. 

David  did  not  understand  the  words  of  Nathan  to  relate 
merely  to  his  dynasty  and  to  his  dominion  over  the  house  of 
Israel.  He  looked  far  beyond  temporal  things,  and  there- 
fore in  the  words  before  us  there  is  a  spiritual  depth  which 
will  not  strike  the  eye  of  the  casual  reader.  The  New  Testa- 
ment must  be  the  expositor  of  the  Old,  and  Peter  in  his 
famous  sermon  gives  us  the  key  to  this  passage.  Turn  to 
Acts  ii.  29,  and  you  will  find  that  Peter  accounts  for  a 
memorable  utterance  of  David  in  the  Psalms  by  declaring 


30 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


that  he  was  a  prophet,  and  knew  that  God  had  sworn  with 
an  oath  to  him,  that  of  the  fruit  of  his  loins  according  to 
the  flesh,  he  would  raise  up  Christ  to  sit  on  his  throne. 

The  joy  which  filled  David's  bosom  was  a  spiritual  one, 
because  he  knew  that  Jesus  would  come  of  his  race,  and 
that  an  everlasting  kingdom  would  be  set  up  in  his  person, 
and  in  him  should  the  Gentiles  trust.  Now,  then,  we  also, 
being  blest  with  all  spiritual  blessings  in  heavenly  places 
in  Christ  Jesus,  are  bound  to  feel  as  David  felt,  and  there- 
fore, we  shall  pass  in  review  David's  expression,  with  the 
desire  that  we  may  drop  into  the  same  mood.  May  God  the 
Holy  Ghost,  who  alone  can  enable  us  to  do  so,  bless  our 
meditation  at  this  time. 

I:  First  I  shall  want  you  to  notice  the  humility  ap- 
parent in  David's  words.  "  Then  went  King  David  in,  and 
sat  before  the  Lord,  and  he  said,  Who  am  I,  0  Lord  God, 
and  what  is  my  house,  that  thou  hast  brought  me  hitherto  ?" 

First,  he  owned  the  lowliness  of  his  origin — "  What  is 
my  house  ? "  He  came  not  of  royal  blood.  Nathan  spake 
the  truth  when  he  said  in  the  Lord's  name,  "  I  took  thee 
from  the  sheepcote,  from  following  the  sheep."  He  was 
but  a  humble  shepherd  lad  when  first  he  was  anointed,  and 
after  that  anointing  he  continued  in  that  humble  office. 
From  this  he  rose  to  become  the  leader  of  a  motley  band 
of  free-lances  exiled  from  their  country  ;  yet  the  Lord  was 
pleased  to  call  him  from  his  low  estate  to  make  him  king 
over  the  chosen  people.  Beloved,  what  is  our  origin  ? 
What  is  there  about  our  descent  that  could  claim  for  us  the 
high  privilege  of  being  the  sons  of  God  ?  Trace  our  origin 
to  its  most  ancient  source,  and  behold  sin  is  there,  staining 
the  escutcheon  of  our  house.  All  down  the  line  there  is  a 
taint  of  high  treason  against  the  divine  majesty  ;  we  come 
of  a  race  of  rebels,  and  our  own  personal  birth  was  marred 
with  sin.  Heraldry  lends  no  pomp  to  us,  and  the  genealogist 
for  the  most  of  us  reveals  no  hereditary  glories,  and  if  he 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


31 


did  they  would  be  mere  fancies  and  fictions  not  worthy  to  be 
mentioned  before  the  presence  of  the  Lord.  "  Who  am 
I,  0  Lord  God  ?  and  what  is  my  father's  house  ?  " 

David  laid  the  most  stress  upon  his  own  personal  unworthi- 
ness.  He  said,  "Who  am  I  ?  What  was  there  in  me  that 
thou  shouldst  make  me  a  king,  and  a  progenitor  of  the 
Christ  ?  "  And  will  not  each  believer  here  say  the  same  ? 
Who  am  I  ?  What  is  there  in  me  ?  God  might  have  chosen 
the  great  and  mighty  of  the  world,  but  he  has  passed  them 
by ;  he  might  have  chosen  the  learned  and  famous,  but  not 
many  of  them  are  called  ;  he  hath  chosen  the  poor  of  this 
world  and  things  that  are  despised;  yea,  the  base  things 
hath  God  chosen,  and  the  things  that  are  not,  to  bring  to 
nought  the  things  that  are,  that  no  flesh  might  glory  in 
his  presence.  Look  at  yourself  from  head  to  foot ;  examine 
every  cranny  of  your  heart,  and  every  single  feature  of  your 
character,  and  can  you  see  anything  there  that  might  com- 
mand Jehovah's  esteem,  any  qualifications  for  being  bought 
with  redeeming  blood,  any  reasons  why  you  should  be  made 
sons  of  God,  and  heirs  of  glory  ?  The  Lord  had  reasons  for 
choosing  you,  for  he  acts  according  to  the  counsel  of  his  will, 
but  those  reasons  are  not  in  you  ;  they  lie  in  his  own  bosom, 
and  you  must  exclaim,  "  Who  am  I  that  thou  hast  brought 
me  hitherto  ?  "  I  have  no  doubt  that  David  looked  upon  his 
own  deservings — what  if  I  rather  correct  myself  and  say 
his  own  undeservings  ? — and  marvelled  that  the  Lord  had 
chosen  him  and  rejected  Saul.  He  was  a  man  after  God's 
own  heart,  but  his  conduct  was  that  of  a  bold,  rough  soldier, 
and  he  could  not  look  upon  it  without  observing  its  imper- 
fections. He  prayed  in  the  twenty-fifth  Psalm,  "  Remember 
not  the  sins  of  my  youth,  nor  my  transgressions ;  according 
to  thy  mercy  remember  thou  me  for  thy  goodness'  sake,  0 
Lord."  These  sins  are  not  recorded  in  the  chronicles  of 
his  life,  but  they  were  written  in  his  own  penitent  memory  • 
and  being  humbled  concerning  them  he  cried,  "  Who  am 


32 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


I  ?"  There  must  have  been  many  an  action  in  his  exile 
and  wanderings  which  he  did  not  rejoice  to  remember ;  for 
instance  his  mimicry  of  madness  before  the  king  of  Gath,  his 
great  anger  against  Nabal,  and  his  affinity  with  the  Philis- 
tines ;  and  besides  such  prominent  errors  as  these,  he  could 
see  many  failings  and  transgressions  all  along,  and  these  both 
made  the  grace  of  God  the  more  illustrious,  and  led  him 
to  cry  from  his  very  heart,  "  Who  am  I,  0  Lord  God  ?  " 

Now,  brethren  and  sisters,  look  back  upon  your  own  lives 
before  conversion.  What  were  they  ?  Let  them  be  blotted 
out  with  tears.  Consider  your  lives  since  conversion,  and 
confess  that  whenever  you  have  been  left  to  yourselves,  and 
the  grace  of  God  has  withdrawn  for  a  while,  you  have  always 
stumbled  into  some  form  or  other  of  deplorable  folly.  Who 
am  I  ?  What  have  I  done  ?  What  have  I  been  ?  How  is  it 
that  I  am  made  thy  child,  purchased  with  the  blood  of  Jesus, 
and  made  an  heir  of  heaven  ?  We  may  sum  it  all  up  in 
that  exclamation,  "  Why  me,  Lord  ?  " 

"  Why  was  I  made  to  hear  thy  voice, 
And  enter  where  there's  room> 
While  thousands  make  a  wretched  choice, 
And  rather  starve  than  come  ?  " 

There  is  something  very  interesting  in  the  expression, 
"Who  am  I,  0  Lord  God  ?  "  His  sense  of  his  own  nothing- 
ness is  strikingly  set  forth  by  putting  the  "  I"  side  by  side 
with  "Lord  God."  "I  David,  Jesse's  son,  the  shepherd's 
boy,  who  am  I,  O  thou  infinite,  all-commanding  Jehovah, 
Creator,  Preserver,  Lord  over  all  ?  How  can  I  stand  in  thy 
presence  ?  I  shrink  »to  nothing  there.  Did  I  not  come  of 
thee  ?  Do  I  not  owe  all  to  thee  ?  Art  thou  not  the  very 
breath  of  my  nostrils  ?  and  I  am  a  nothing,  a  very  dream, 
a  thing  of  nought,  and  yet  thou  dost  look  upon  me  ;  and 
thou  showerest  down  thy  mercies  upon  me  ;  with  a  flood  of 
blessedness  dost  thou  carry  me  away.    Who  am  I,  0  Lord 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


33 


God,  and  what  is  my  house  ?  "  Thus  you  see  David's  hu- 
mility under  a  sense  of  mercy. 

And  let  us  here  remark  that  nothing  humbles  a  man  like 
the  mercy  of  God.  Unkind,  ungenerous  remarks  do  not 
humble  the  soul,  they  rather  gender  pride.  Under  the  criti- 
cisms of  unkindness  a  man  who  is  a  man  finds  all  that  is 
strong  within  him  coming  to  the  front,  and,  as  in  Job's  case, 
self-assertion  straightway  leads  the  van.  Eeproach  and  re- 
buke tend  rather  to  make  men  proud  than  humble,  love  is 
the  melting  power.  Nothing  weighs  a  man  down  like  a 
load  of  blessing.  When  you  see  God  blotting  out  your  sin, 
accounting  you  righteous  in  his  sight,  for  Jesus'  sake,  and 
saying  to  you,  "  I  have  loved  thee  with  an  everlasting  love, 
therefore  with  loving  kindness  have  I  drawn  thee,"  where  is 
boasting  then  ?  It  is  excluded.  Love  shows  boasting  to  the 
door,  and  bars  its  return.  Peter  was  ready  enough  to  speak 
of  what  he  had  done,  but  in  the  presence  of  his  loving 
Lord,  when  he  saw  his  ship  sinking  through  the  plenteous 
draught  of  fishes,  he  knelt  down  and  cried  in  deep  humilia- 
tion, "  Depart  from  me,  for  I  am  a  sinful  man,  0  Lord." 

"  The  more  thy  glories  strike  mine  eyes 
The  humbler  I  shall  lie." 

A  sight  of  the  glory  and  mercy  of  (£od  is  sure  to  produce 
in  us  a  sense  of  shame  for  our  ill-desert,  combined  with 
wonder  that  God  should  have  so  much  as  a  single  kind  look 
for  us.  Sit  ye  down,  then,  children  of  God,  and  review  his 
mercy-  and  be  humbled.  Do  not  deny  yourselves  the  joyful 
review  because  of  a  jealous  fear  of  being  exalted  by  it. 
Never  endorse  the  great  lie  of  the  self-righteous,  that  full 
assurance  of  faith  leads  men  to  presumption.  It  does  no 
such  thing  ;  it  humbles  a  man,  makes  him  feel  his  own 
unworthiness,  and  so  leads  him  to  walk  more-  carefully 
and  prayerfully  before  his  God.  It  is  in  this  point  that 
faith  makes  us  strong,  for  while  it  exalts  our  joys,  it  slays 


34 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


our  pride  and  makes  us  shrink  to  nothing  before  the  great 
All  in  All. 

II.  Now  observe  secondly,  David's  wondering  grati- 
tude. He  wondered  first,  at  what  God  had  done  for  him  ; 
"What  is  my  house,  that  thou  hast  brought  me  hitherto  ? — 
to  a  house  of  cedar,  and  to  be  able  to  talk  about  building 
a  house  for  thee  ;  to  be  thy  chosen  king,  and  to  have  my 
seed  established  on  my  throne,  and  to  become  the  ancestor  of 
the  Christ  ! "  Come,  brethren  and  sisters,  do  you  not  need 
me  to  preach  to  you  here.  I  should  like  to  sit  down  and 
leave  you  to  muse  upon  what  the  Lord  has  done  in  bringing 
you  hitherto — up  from  the  pit  of  destruction,  up  from  the 
miry  clay  of  your  depravity,  out  of  the  horrible  prison-house 
of  your  dread  of  divine  wrath,  away  from  the  Egypt  of  dark- 
ness and  bondage  into  light  and  liberty.  What  an  almighty 
work  it  was  that  brought  you  from  darkness  into  light, 
from  death  into  life.  Bless  the  Lord  for  this.  Praise  him 
for  your  calling  when  effectually  he  drew  you,  and  you  ran 
unto  him  weeping  and  singing.  Praise  him  for  your  pardon 
when  he  washed  you  in  the  blood  and  you  were  clean,  and 
knew  you  were.  Wonder  of  wonders  this  !  Praise  him 
for  your  justification,  when  he  took  the  robe  the  Saviour 
wrought  and  decked  you  with  it,  as  never  was  bride  arrayed 
by  the  most  loving  bridegroom.  Praise  him  for  your  regen- 
eration, when  you  were  born  into  a  new  world  :  praise  him 
for  being  set  apart  for  holy  uses,  admitted  to  new  company, 
filled  with  holy  joys,  instructed  in  heavenly  truths,  and  dedi- 
cated to  sacred  duties.  Praise  him  for  sanctification,  which 
has  made  you  meet  to  be  partakers  of  the  inheritance  of  the 
saints  in  light.  Praise  him  for  the  preservation  from  sin 
which  you  have  hitherto  received,  and  the  education  for 
eternity  which  has  so  happily  commenced  ;  for  the  provision 
so  bounteous  with  which  he  has  furnished  a  table  in  the 
wilderness,  both  temporally  and  spiritually,  and  for  the  pro- 
tection with  which  he  has  warded  off  the  arrow  that  flieth 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


35 


by  day,  and  the  pestilence  that  walketh  in  darkness.  0 
Lord,  I  bless  thee  that  thou  hast  brought  me  hitherto. 
Sometimes  when  I  take  a  view  of  what  God  has  done  for  me 
I  feel  like  Christian  when  he  went  through  the  Valley  of 
the  Shadow  of  Death  by  night.  Remember  how  Banyan 
pictures  the  scene ; — a  narrow  pathway  with  a  pit  on  this 
side  and  a  deep  morass  on  that  ;  on  all  sides  hobgoblins, 
dragons,  and  spirits  of  the  deep,  seeking  to  destroy  him  ;  his 
sword  useless,  and  therefore  put  by  in  its  sheath  ;  no  weapon 
in  his  hand  but  that  All-prayer,  which  he  found  alone  to 
be  equal  to  the  emergency  ;  and  when  he  had  gone  through 
it  and  the  sun  rose  on  him,  and  he  looked  back,  he  could 
not  believe  his  eyes  that  he  passed  through  it.  And  truly 
at  this  moment  looking  back  on  life  with  its  innumerable 
temptations,  and  remembering  the  tendency  to  yield  there  is 
in  every  one  of  us,  we  can  each  one  sing  as  Christian  did — 

"  Oh,  world  of  wonders  (I  can  say  no  less),  , 
That  1  should  be  preserved  in  that  distress 
That  I  have  met  with  here  !    Oh,  blessed  be 
That  hand  which  from  it  hath  delivered  me  ! 
Dangers  in  darkness,  devils,  hell,  and  sin, 
Did  compass  me,  while  I  this  vale  was  in  ; 
Yea,  snares,  and  pits,  and  traps,  and  nets  did  lie 
My  path  about,  that  worthless,  silly  I 
Might  have  been  catched,  entangled,  and  cast  down, 
But  since  I  live,  let  Jesus  wear  the  crown." 

David  did  not  end  his  wonder  there,  but  went  on  to 
another  and  greater  theme,  viz.,  the  blessings  which  the  Lord 
had  promised  him.  He  praised  the  Lord  for  what  he  had 
laid  up  as  well  as  for  what  he  had  laid  out.  He  said,  and 
mark  the  words,  "And  this  was  yet  a  small  thing  in  thy 
sight,  0  Lord  God,  but  thou  hast  spoken  also  of  thy  servant's 
house  for  a  great  while  to  come."  What  a  wonderful  expres- 
sion !  ''And  this  was  yet  a  small  thing  in  thy  sight."  It 
sometimes  appears  as  if  every  mercy  the  Lord  brings  us  is 


\ 


36 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


meant  to  eclipse  those  that  have  gone  before.    For  instance,    j  t 
he  gives  a  sinner  pardon,  and  the  sonl  is  for  a  time  perfectly   |  i 
content  with  cleansing,  and  expects  nothing  more,  but  soon   j  t 
it  learns  that  there  is  such  a  thing  as  justification  ;  and  t 
when  it  comes  to  be  just  with  God,  complete  in  Christ,  and  i 
accepted  in  the  Beloved,  then  it  rejoices  anew  as  if  pardon  i 
were  but  a  small  thing  compared  with  justification.    And  lo,    |  1 
ere  our  eyes  have  fully  drunk  in  the  beauty  of  justification,    ;  i 
we  hear  the  word  which  saith,  "  A.  new  heart  also  will  I  j 
give  you,  and  a  right  spirit  will  I  put  within  you  :  I  will  ; 
write  my  law  in  your  hearts,  and  ye  shall  not  depart  from    |  i 
me,"  and  our  hearts  are  carried  away  with  the  splendors  of   j  i 
sanctifi cation.    Scarcely,  however,  have  we  been  fully  made  j  i 
aware  of  the  extent  of  this  blessing  before  another  portion  j 
of  the  royal  regalia  is  uncovered,  and  we  hear  it  said,  I  I 
"  They  shall  be  my  sons  and  daughters,  saith  the  Lord  God 
Almighty,"  and  now  we  understand  that  we  are  adopted, 
and  are  children  of  God.    Before  we  fully  understand  this 
great  privilege  we  begin  to  hear  the  song  whose  swell  is  like  ' 
that  of  many  waters,  "  He  hath  made  us  kings  and  priests 
unto  God,  and  we  shall  reign  forever  and  ever,"  and  we  see 
the  royal  prerogative,  the  priestly  dignity  which  God  has 
put  upon  us ;  yea,  and  long  before  even  these  mercies  are 
perfectly  understood  we  are  called  away  to  see  the  heavenly 
joys,  compared  with  which  all  else  will  seem  to  be  yet  a  ] 
small  thing. 

I  beg  you,  my  brethren,  to  remember  to-day  that  your 
God  has  spoken  of  you  for  a  great  while  to  come.  He  has  1 
said,  "I  will  never  leave  thee  nor  forsake  thee."  Is  not 
that  for  a  great  while  to  come  ?  He  has  bidden  thee  say, 
"  Surely  goodness  and  mercy  shall  follow  me  all  the  days  of 
my  life,  and  I  shall  dwell  in  the  house  of  the  Lord  forever." 
Is  not  that  for  a  great  while  to  come  ?  He  has  promised 
to  give  you  all  you  ever  shall  require.  "  No  good  thing  will  | 
I  withhold  from  them  that  walk  uprightly."    Note  well  that  A 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


37 


text  ever  to  be  remembered,  "  Because  I  live  ye  shall  live 
also,"  and  that  petition  of  our  Lord,  "Father,  I  will  that 
they  also  whom  thou  hast  given  me  be  wTith  me  where  I  am, 
that  they  may  behold  my  glory."  These  and  a  hundred 
more  gracious  words,  all  concern  a  great  while  to  come.  Oh, 
my  brethren,  you  have  not  obtained  transient  blessings, 
boons  which  will  be  gone  to-morrow,  gifts  which  will  decay 
as  the  year  grows  old  and  the  autumn  leaves  flutter  to  the 
ground.  You  have  not  obtained  a  mercy  which  will  leave 
you  when  you  tremble  in  decrepitude,  nay  rather,  when  old 
and  grey-headed  your  God  will  not  forsake  you  ;  you  shall 
still  briug  forth  fruit  in  old  age,  to  show  that  the  Lord  is 
upright.  "  When  thou  passest  through  the  rivers  I  will  be 
with  thee  ;  the  floods  shall  not  overflow  thee  ; "  therefore 
may  you  boldly  say,  "  Yea,  though  I  walk  through  the  val- 
ley of  the  shadow  of  death  I  will  fear  no  evil,  for  thou  art 
with  me.".  When  ye  die  ye  shall  rise  again.  In  your  flesh 
you  shall  see  God,  and  shall  rejoice  before  him.  Yea,  for 
ever  shall  you  be  satisfied  when  }rou  wake  up  in  his  likeness  ; 
you  shall  go  into  everlasting  joy,  and  so  shall  be  for  ever  with 
the  Lorci.  He  has  spoken  to  you  for  a  great  while  to  come. 
Sit  down  and  wonder  ;  wonder  and  adore  for  evermore. 

"  Firm  as  the  lasting  hills, 

This  covenant  shall  endure, 
Whose  potent  shalls  and  wills 
Make  every  blessing  sure  : 
When  ruin  shakes  all  nature's  frame, 
Its  jots  and  tittles  stand  the  same." 

David  had  yet  another  theme  for  wonder,  which  was 
this — the  manner  of  the  giving  of  all  this.  There  is  often  as 
much  in  the  manner  of  gift  as  in  a  gift  itself.  I  have 
known  some  one  who  could  refuse  a  favor,  and  give  greater 
pleasure  by  their  kindly- worded  denial  than  others  by  their 
rude  consent.  Now,  here  is  a  mercy  of  which  the  way  of 
giving  it  is,  if  possible,  more  astounding  than  the  mercy 


38 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


itself,  though  that  is  amazing  beyond  measure ;  for  David 
says,  "  And  is  this  the  manner  of  man,  0  Lord  God  ? " 
The  word  in  the  Hebrew  is  the  "law."  It  is  never  trans- 
lated, except  in  this  case,  by  the  word  "  manner  ; "  and  we 
may  keep  to  the  word  "  law"  if  we  like  : — "  Is  this  the  law 
of  man,  0  Lord  God  ? "  We  will  render  the  passage  first 
according  to  the  authorized  version  ;  "  Is  this  the  manner  of 
man  ?  "  Does  man  act  like  this  ?  Does  man  pitch  his  love 
upon  the  unworthy  ?  Does  man  exalt  the  lowest  to  the 
highest  place  ?  Does  man  forgive  transgressions,  and  con- 
tinue to  do  so  ?  Does  man  bear  provocation,  and  return 
love  for  offences  ?  Is  man  so  faithful  ?  Is  man  so  bounte- 
ous ?  Oh,  man  can  never  be  divine,  and  therefore  man  can 
never  come  up  to  the  infinity  of  thy  grace,  0  Lord  God. 
This  is  not  after  the  manner  of  man,  neither  is  it  after  the 
law  of  man,  for  the  law  of  Adam  is,  "  In  the  day  thou  eatest 
thereof  thou  shalt  surely  die."  Punishment  follows  quick 
on  the  heels  of  sin.  fFree  grace  is  not  the  law  of  the  first 
man,  it  is  the  law  of  another  man,  the  Second  Adam,  and 
so  some  render  the  passage,  "  This  is  the  law  of  the  Man," 
the  Man  Christ  Jesus,  the  true  Adam.  We  will  not  contend 
for  that  rendering,  but  it  contains  a  truth  which  we  will  now 
utter  in  our  own  words.  It  is  not  the  law  of  man,  it  is  the 
law  of  grace,  the  law  of  infinite  mercy,  the  law  of  infallible 
faithfulness,  the  law  of  immutable  love.  Beloved,  if  it  had 
not  been  revealed  to  you  ye  could  never  have  imagined  or 
dreamed  of  such  a  fulness  of  grace  as  the  Lord  has  actually 
made  to  pass  before  you.  It  is  more  marvelous  than  romance. 
It  may  well  make  your  heart  exult,  for  it  is  astonishing  be- 
yond all  measure.  Jonathan  Edwards,  when  defending  the 
great  Calvinistic  theory,  made  use  of  language  somewhat  to 
this  effect  :  "  You  tell  me  that  the  doctrines  of  grace  are  a 
dream  ;  then,  if  it  be  so,  you  ought  to  join  with  me  in  per- 
petual regret  that  it  is  so."  I  venture  to  say,  let  the  earth 
be  hung  in  sackcloth  if  there  be  no  covenant  of  grace,  no  way 


MAEEOW  AND  FATNESS. 


39 


of  salvation  by  redemption  ;  for  it  is  the  most  charming  of 
conceptions,  and  brings  to  mankind  the  most  extraordinary 
of  blessings.  If  this  be  dreaming,  let  me  dream  on,  my  God, 
for  ever.  Eternal  love  welling  up  in  infinite  blessing  to  the 
chosen  race,  and  pouring  forth  for  ever  inexhaustible  rivers 
of  mercy,  is  far  above  all  that  man  could  of  himself  have 
imagined.  Poetry  has  never  soared  within  a  myriad  leagues 
of  such  an  imagination.  I  am  more  than  content  with  the 
covenant  love  of  my  God.  I  ask  for  nothing  else.  This 
fills  my  soul  and  satisfies  my  spirit,  and  I  would  sit  down 
before  thee,  my  Father,  and  say,  "Is  this  the  manner  of 
man,  0  Lord  God  ?  "  Infinite  love  granting  infinite  boons  ! 
The  gospel  must  be  true  ;  it  bears  its  own  witness  upon  its 
very  brow,  for  who  could  have  made  it  up  ?  Where  is  the 
imagination  that  could  have  conceived  such  majestic  mercy 
as  God  reveals  unto  his  people  ? 

III.  Now,  changing  the  note,  and  yet  continuing  in  the 
same  strain,  we  have  to  speak  of  David's  emotion  of  love. 
I  almost  regret  that  I  have  to  speak  to  you  ;  I  wish  I  could 
sit  still  and  yet  make  you  feel  what  I  feel.  If  there  could  be 
some  electric  action  by  which  thought  could  be  communicated 
without  words,  it  would  suit  my  mood  exactly  at  this  mo- 
ment. David  found  but  a  scant  outlet  for  his  love.  What 
precious  words  are  these  :  "  What  can  David  say  more  f " 
It  is  love  struck  dumb  by  receiving  an  unspeakable  gift. 
The  king  was  exactly  in  the  same  case  as  Paul  when  he  said, 
"What  shall  we  then  say  to  these  things  ?"  To  that  ques- 
tion no  answer  was  ever  given  by  love.  Love  sat  silent  after 
she  had  asked  it,  speechless  in  adoration  ;  and  faith  pushed 
himself  forward  and  cried,  "  If  God  be  for  us,  who  can  be 
against  us  ?"  But  love  was  silent,  dumbfounded  with  the 
mass  of  mercy.  So  David  says,  "  What  can  David  say 
more  ? "  Certainly  no  eloquence  can  match  the  silence  of 
human  love  abashed  by  divine  love.  Sit  ye  down,  0  ye 
saints,  and  cry,  "  What  can  thy  servants  say  ?  " 


40 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


Notice  the  childlikeness  of  this  love.  "What  can  Da- 
vid say  more  ? "  Your  little  child,  if  she  is  ill,  will  not 
say,  "Mother,  nurse  me,"  but  "Mother,  nurse  poor  little 
Mary  :  "  and  when  she  feels  very  sick  she  will  say,  "  Mary's 
head  aches."  Your  little  John,  when  he  wants  you  to  play 
with  him,  will  say,  "Please,  Father,  take  little  John  on  your 
knee,"  or  "  Please,  Father,  take  John  for  a  walk."  It  is 
the  way  children  talk,  and  this  is  David's  child-talk  to 
God.  "  What  shall  David  say  more  ? "  He  might  have 
said,  "What  shall  I  say  more  ?"  but  love  taught  him  a 
simple  and  sweet  speech  which  he  delighted  to  use. 

Observe,  it  is  a  love  which  longs  for  communion,  and 
enjoys  it.  He  says  "  What  can  David  say  more  unto  thee?" 
He  can  talk  to  other  people,  but  he  does  not  quite  know 
how  to  speak  to  God,  and  then  he  adds,  "For  thou,  Lord. 
God,  knowest  thy  servant,"  which  is  a  parallel  passage  to 
that  of  Peter,  "Lord,  thou  knowest  all  things,  thou  know- 
est that  I  love'thee,"  as  if  he  could  not  speak  his  heart,  but 
his  Master  could  read  it,  and  he  besought  the  Lord  to  act 
as  his  interpreter.  Such  thoughts  as  those  which  were  in 
David's  mind  break  the  backs  of  words  and  stagger  speech. 
Tongues  are  an  after- thought,  hearts  come  first  ;  and  often- 
times hearts  wish  they  could  fly  away  from  tongues.  Lan- 
guage is  but  a  feeble  wing,  we  want  to  ride  the  lightning. 

"  Teach  me  some  melodious  sonnet 
Sung  by  flaming  tongues  above," 

has  often  been  our  cry.  We  are  right  enough  in  thinking  that 
we  can  never  express  ourselves  until  we  get  to  heaven.  How 
does  John  Berridge  put  it  in  that  singular  hymn  ?  I  do  not 
know  if  I  can  recall  it  on  the  spur  of  the  moment.  Yes, 
here  it  is — 

"  Then  my  tongue  would  fain  express 
All  his  love  and  loveliness  ; 
But  I  lisp  and  falter  forth 
Broken  words  not  half  his  worth. 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


41 


"  Vex'd  I  try  and  try  again, 
Still  my  efforts  all  are  vain  ; 
Living  tongues  are  dumb  at  best, 
We  must  die  to  speak  of  Christ." 

Death  must  unloose  these  stammering  tongues,  or  they  will 
never  be  able  to  speak  all  that  we  feel  when  divine  love  casts 
ns  into  devout  raptures.  Strip  us  of  this  cumber,  and  we 
will  vie  with  seraphs  in  their  burning  hymns,  and  even  the 
heavenly  harps  shall  learn  from  us  how  to  magnify  the  Lord. 
Till  then  we  must  be  content  to  cry  with  David,  What  can 
we  say  more.    Thou,  Lord,  knowest  thy  servants. 

But  do  you  see  it  is  obedient  love  as  well  ?   It  is  not 
mere  sentiment,  there  is  a  practicalness  about  it,  for  he  says, 
"Lord,  thou  knowest  thy  servant"  he  subscribes  himself 
as  henceforth  bound  to  God's  service.    With  delight  he  puts 
on  his  Master's  livery,  and  sits  like  a  servitor  in  the  hall 
of  the  King  of  kings,  waiting  to  hear  what  shall  be  spoken 
to  him.    As  the  eyes  of  the  handmaidens  are  to  their  mis- 
tress, so  his  eye  is  up  to  his  God.    Hence  it  is  that  David  was 
wont  in  after  times  to  sing,  "  0  Lord,  I  am  thy  servant ;  I 
am  thy  servant,  and  the  son  of  thine  handmaid  :  thou  hast 
loosed  my  bonds."    He  had  caught  the  spirit  of  the  Chris- 
tian proverb,  "To  serve  God  is  to  reign."    He  loved  to  do 
homage  at  the  feet  of  his  liege-lord,  and  yield  himself  and 
I  all  that  he  had  as  a  reasonable  service  to  him  who  had 
j  crowned  him  with  loving  kindness  and  tender  mercies, 
i  Warm  love  always  urges  the  soul  to  service.    None  are  so 
!  ready  to  wear  the  yoke  of  Christ  as  those  who  have  leaned 
on  his  bosom.    The  nearer  we  come  to  our  Father's  heart 
;  the  more  submissive  we  are  to  his  commands.    Free  grace  is 
;  the  best  atmosphere  in  which  to  grow  strong  in  obedience, 
j  The  more  often  we  consider  what  we  owe  to  eternal  love  the 
more  ready  we  shall  be  to  pay  our  vows  unto  the  Lord. 

How  he  dwells  upon  those  words,  "Thou,  Lord  God." 
What  pleasure  he  finds  in  the  very  name  of  his  Benefactor 


42 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


and  Master.  All  through  Scripture  we  ought  to .  notice 
the  titles  by  which  God  is  called  in  each  distinct  place.  We, 
are  so  poverty-stricken  in  thought  that  we  generally  use  but 
one  name  for  God  ;  not  so  the  rich  soul  of  David  ;  through- 
out the  Psalms  you  will  find  him  appropriately  ringing  the 
changes  upon  Adonai,  El,  Olohim,  Jehovah,  and  all  the 
varied  combinations  of  names  which  loving  hearts  were  wont 
to  give  to  the  glorious  Lord  of  Hosts  :  and  here  he  says, 
"  Thou,  Lord  God."  He  delights  in  God  and  finds  music 
in  his  name  ;  he  is  affluent  in  ascriptions  and  titles,  because 
His  soul  is  rich  in  affection.  His  love  was  reverent  love, 
adoring  love,  meditative  love,  intelligent  love,  whole-hearted 
love.  It  expresses  itself  by  reverence  when  it  fails  to  com- 
pass infinite  mercies  by  descriptions.  I  want  every  believer 
here  to  be  sweetly  stirred  with  this  love  this  morning ;  I 
would  have  you  go  home  and  spend  an  hour  this  afternoon 
in  contemplating  the  ever-blessed  God,  who  has  done  so 
much  for  you  that  you  may  well  say,  "  What  can  David 
say  more  unto  thee  ?  " 

My  time  is  flying,  but  I  must  have  space  for  another 
point.  David's  language  is  so  rich  that  truly  as  I  take  up 
these  words  one  by  one  I  feel  as  if  I  could  say  with  the 
psalmist,  "  My  soul  shall  be  satisfied  with  marrow  and  fat- 
ness."   Have  we  not  marrow  and  fatness  here  ? 

IV.  David's  heart  was  full  of  praise,  and  the  praise  was 
first  for  the  freeness  of  the  grace  which  brought  him  such 
blessedness.  "For  thy  word's  sake,  and  according  to  thine 
own  heart  hast  thou  done  all  these  great  things."  Whenever 
the  believer  asks  why  God  gave  him  grace  in  Christ  Jesus  he 
can  only  resort  to  one  answer, — the  Lord's  own  heart  has  de- 
vised and  ordained  our  salvation.  Why  did  the  Lord  love 
you,  my  brother  ?  Because  he  would  love  you,  is  the  only 
possible  reply.  In  the  book  of  Deuteronomy,  seventh  chap- 
ter and  seventh  and  eighth  verses,  we  have  this  self-contained 
love  set  forth.    The  Lord  did  not  love  the  people  because  they 


M ARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


43 


were  numerous,  but  because  he  loved  them.  His  love  was 
its  own  reason.  He  loved  us  because  he  would  love  us,  "  ac- 
cording to  his  own  heart."  Now,  this  is  one  of  the  things 
which  always  must  astound  us  and  make  us  love  God,  that 
everything  comes  from  him  spontaneously,  without  anything 
in  us  that  could  produce  it  or  call  it  forth.  "1  will  have 
mercy  on  whom  I  will  have  mercy,  and  I  will  have  com- 
passion on  whom  I  will  have  compassion,"  rolls  like  thunder 
over  the  rebel's  head,  but  to  a  child  of  God  it  is  full""  of 
music  ;  so  that  the  voice  of  the  Lord  is  full  of  majesty  to 
him.  Oh,  wonder  of  wonders,  that  he  who  passed  the  fallen 
angels  by,  nevertheless,  stooped  to  save  unworthy  men,  for 
so  it  seemed  good  in  his  sight. 

David  praised  also  the  faithfulness  of  God.  He  says, 
"For  thy  word's  sake."  Is  not  that  the  ground  upon 
which  all  mercy  is  received  by  the  child  of  God  ?  God  has 
promised  it  and  will  keep  his  word.  He  never  did  run  back 
from  his  covenant  yet. 

"  As  well  might  lie  his  being-  quit 
^  As  break  his  promise  or  forget." 

Jehovah  must  be  true.  Oh,  what  a  faithful  God  has  he 
been  to  many  of  us  !  We  can  recount  the  scores  and  hun- 
dreds of  times  when,  if  the  promise  had  failed,  the  disaster 
would  have  been  irretrievable  ;  but  it  never  has  failed.  Not 
one  good  thing  hath  failed  of  all  that  the  Lord  God  hath 
promised.  Ye  men  of  seventy,  ye  can  say  that  :  we  who  are 
but  lads  in  the  army  are  nevertheless  bold  to  avow  the  same. 
He  has  helped  in  every  need,  and  never  yet  has  he  been 
backward  in  coming  to  our  rescue  or  supplying  our  necessi- 
ties. Glory  be  to  his  name.  Let  us  sit  down  and  adore  his 
iaithfulness. 

Here  we  may  also  see  David  discerning  the  connection 
between  divine  mercy  and  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  What 
if  I  read  it  so — "For  thy  Word's  sake" — for  the  sake  of 


44 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


Eternal  Logos,  the  Word  that  was  God,  and  was  with  God— 
for  his  sake  all  these  mercies  have  come  to  us.  It  is  very 
sweet  to  see  the  mark  of  the  pierced  hand  on  every  covenant 
blessing,  to  receive  every  boon  from  the  hand  that  was  nailed 
to  the  tree  for  us,  and  to  feel 

"  There's  ne'er  a  gift  his  hand  bestows. 
But  cost  bis  beart  a  groan." 

This  will  lead  us  to  praise  God  for  the  freeness  of  the  mercy, 
for  the  faithfulness  of  the  mercy,  and  for  the  mediatorial 
grace  by  which  every  mercy  comes  to  us. 

Then  the  king's  heart  was  taken  up  with  the  greatness  of 
the  covenant  blessings.  "According  to  thine  own  heart, 
hast  thou  done  all  these  great  things."  They  were  all  great. 
There  was  not  a  little  mercy  among  them.  All  the  mercies 
which  we  great  sinners  receive  from  our  great  God  are  incon- 
ceivably great,  and  therefore  demand  from  us  the  greatest 
thankfulness.  Dwell  on  the  great  deliverances,  the  great 
promises,  the  great  comforts,  the  great  expectations  of  the 
children  of  God,  till  your  souls  are  enlarged  with  gratitude.  9 

Once  more  David  praised  God  for  his  condescending 
familiarity.  "  According  to  thine  own  heart,  hast  thou 
done  all  these  great  things,  to  make  thy  servant  hnotv  them." 
They  were  revealed  to  David  by  a  prophet,  just  as  Jesus 
communed  with  his  disciples,  and  said,  "I  have  told  you. 
before  it  come  to  pass,  that  when  it  is  come  to  pass  ye  may 
believe."  Arid  yet  again,  "  If  it  were  not  so  I  would  have 
told  you."  God's  mercies  are  instructions  to  us.  We  never 
know  them  until  God  brings  them  to  us  and  makes  us  know 
them,  they  are  their  own  interpreters  ;  like  letters  written  in 
cipher  they  have  the  clue  within  themselves.  As  the  prophe- 
cies are  never  understood  until  they  are  fulfilled,  so  the 
mercies  of  God  are  never  understood  until  they  are  received. 
Experience  teaches.  Experience  is  the  master  doctor  in  the 
University  of  Christ.    When  ye  know  him  by  testing  ard 


MAKROW  AND  FATNESS. 


45 


handling  him,  then  is  Jesus  sweet;  when  you  know  his 
power  by  testing  it  in  weakness,  then  you  understand  its 
exceeding  greatness  ;  when  you  know  his  faithfulness  in  deep 
affliction  and  great  need,  then  you  see  it ;  and  when  you 
taste  his  mercy  under  a  sense  of  great  sin,  then  you  weep 
with  joy  as  you  perceive  it.  God  alone  can  make  his  ser- 
vants know  his  gifts.  Blessed  be  God  who  alone  teaches  us 
to  profit,  and  makes  his  own  dear  children  to  sit  at  his  feet. 
Hath  he  not  said  it,  "They  shall  all  be  taught  of  the  Lord." 
No  school  like  this  ;  may  I  for  ever  be  a  scholar  in  it ;  on 
the  lowest  form  in  that  school  I  would  be  content  to  sit  and 
learn  eternally.  Now  give  your  souls  to  the  sacred  lesson. 
Praise  and  magnify  your  God,  0  ye  that  love  his  name ! 

V.  To  conclude,  not  for  want  of  matter,  however,  but 
for  want  of  time,  David's  soul  was  wound  up  to  high 
thughts  of  God,  for  our  text  concludes  with  these  words : 
1  Wherefore  thou  art  great,  0  Lord  God  :  for  there  is  none 
like  thee,  neither  is  there  any  God  beside  thee,  according  to 
all  that  we  have  heard  with  our  ears."  God  is  great.  He 
is  the  greatest  because  he  is  the  best.  The  old  Romans  used 
to  say,  optimus  maximus — the  best,  the  greatest.  Thou, 
God,  art  good,  and  therefore  thou  art  great.  As  we  drink 
in  the  sense  of  his  goodness  we  cannot  help  saying,  "  Where- 
fore thou  art  great,  0  Lord  God" — great  positively  ;  then 
great  comparatively — "  there  is  none  like  thee  ; "  yea,  great- 
est of  all,  superlatively— "  neither  is  there  any  God  beside 
thee."  I  have  heard  of  a  preacher  upon  whom  a  good  man's 
criticism  was  that  he  made  God  great  whenever  he  preached. 
God  forbid  that  we  should  ever  preach  otherwise,  and  may 
you,  dear  hearers,  always  feel  how  great  God  is.  I  pray 
you  go  away  with  this  on  your  minds — he  is  too  great  for  me 
to  dare  offend  him,  too  greatly  good  for  me  to  grieve  him, 
too  greatly  good  for  me  to  doubt  him.  Think  of  that  last. 
So  great,  that  nothing  can  be  great  that  I  can  "do  for  him  ; 
so  great,  that  nothing  is  too  great  for  me  to  give  to  him  ;  so 


46 


MARROW  AND  FATNESS. 


great,  that  when  I  give  myself  away,  it  is  a  poor  offering 
compared  with  his  deserts  ;  so  great,  that  when  all  earth 
and  heaven  ring  with  his  praises,  they  still  fall  short  of  his 
glory  ;  so  goodly  great  and  greatly  good,  that  I  would  be  all 
his,  and  yield  myself  entirely  up  to  his  will,  to  be  like  an 
atom  in  a  current,  borne  along  by  his  unresisting  will.  I 
would  be  what  he  wonld  have  me  be,  do  what  he  would 
have  me  do,  give  what  he  would  have  me  give,  suffer  what 
he  would  have  me  suffer  ;  I  would  be  absorbed  into  him  ; 
I  would  find  a  heaven  in  a  blessed  union  with  himself,  which 
should  prevent  for  ever  any  self-assertion,  or  the  setting  up 
of  so  much  as  a  wish  or  a  thought  which  would  be  contrary 
to  his  mind.  God  is  great,  therefore  would  I  wish  others  to 
know  him  and  love  him  too.  All  hearts  are  cold  in  every 
place,  would  God  they  were  melted  in  this  fire  :  would  God 
they  flowed  down  at  his  touch  in  constant  worship.  There- 
fore, since  he  is  so  great,  J  will  speak  great  things  of  him  ; 
I  will  tell  it  out  among  the  heathen  that  the  Lord  reigneth. 
I  would  ask  for  talent,  if  I  may  be  trusted  with  it,  with 
which  to  proclaim  him  ;  and  if  I  have  small  ability,  yet  with 
such  as  I  have,  grace  being  given  me,  I  would  to  the  utmost 
of  my  ability  proclaim  the  greatness  which  has  already  over- 
powered my  spirit.  Let  him  be  crowned  with  majesty  ;  let 
him  be  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords,  because  of  all  that 
he  has  done.  Go  forth,  ye  daughters  of  Jerusalem,  and 
crown  your  King ;  throughout  the  whole  of  your  lives 
weave  chaplets  for  the  Redeemer's  brow.  Let  your  lives 
be  psalms,  let  your  garments  be  vestments,  let  every  meal 
be  a  sacrament,  let  your  whole  being  be  transformed  into 
an  immortal  Hallelujah  unto  the  Lord  Most  High,  for  he 
is  greatly  to  be  extolled.  0,  come,  let  us  worship  and  bow 
down,  let  us  kneel  before  the  Lord  our  Maker,  and  give  unto 
the  Lord  the  glory  due  unto  his  name. 

Blessed  God,  blessed  God,  what  more  can  thy  servant 
say  ?    He  hath  not  the  voice  of  David,  nor  David's  harp,  nor  [ 


MAREOW  AND  FATNESS. 


47 


David's  poetic  fire,  nor  David's  inspiration,  and  where  even 
David  failed,  what  more  can  he  say  ?  Lord,  thou  knowest 
all  things,  thou  knowest  that  I  love  thee,  and  thousands  of 
thy  servants  here  can  join  in  the  same  declaration.  Accept 
what  we  speak  and  what  we  feel,  but  cannot  utter.  Bless 
thou  thy  saints  for  ever.  Amen. 


I 


SERMON  III. 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHUKCH. 

Delivered  on  Lord's-Day  Morning,  at  the  Metro-  j 
politan  Tabernacle,  Newington. 

"And  the  Lord  added  to  the  church  daily  such  as  should  be  saved."— 
Acts  ii.  47. 

We  are  just  coming  to  the  most  beautiful  season  of  the  j 
year — the  spring,  when  everything  around  us  is  shaking  oil 
the  chill  grave-clothes  of  winter,  and  putting  on  the  beauti- 
ful array  of  a  new  life.    The  church  of  God  was  in  that  con-  j 
dition  at  Pentecost,  her  winter  was  past,  and  the  flowers  j 
appeared  on  the  earth.    She  enjoyed  the  spring  breezes,  for 
the  breath  of  the  Holy  Spirit  refreshed  her  garden  ;  there  • 
was  spring  music — the  time  of  the  singing  of  birds  was  come, 
for  her  preachers  testified  faithfully  of  Jesus,  and  so  many 
and  varied  were  the  sweet  notes  which  welcomed  the  new 
season,  that  many  nations  of  men  heard  in  their  own  tongue 
the  wonderful  works  of  God.    There  was,  also,  the  spring 
blossoming,  the  fig  tree  put  forth  her  green  figs,  and  the  vines 
with  the  tender  grapes  gave  a  good  smell,  for  all  around  mul- 
titudes inquired,  "Men  and  brethren,  what  must  we  do  ?  " 
and  many  also  avowed  their  faith  in  Jesus.    There  were  the 
spring  showers  of  repentance,  the  spring  sun-gleams  of  joy 
in  the  Holy  Ghost  and  the  spring  flowers  of  newly-given 
hope  and  faith.    May  we  behold  just  such  another  spring 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH 


49 


time  in  all  the  churches  of  Jesus  ChrisjKthroughout  the 
world,  and  meanwhile  let  us  arouse  ourselves  suitable  to 
so  gladsome  a  season.  Let  us  rise  up  and  meet  the  Well- 
Beloved,  and  in  concert  with  him  let  us  sow  in  hope,  and 
look  for  a  speedy  upspringing.  The  Sun  of  Righteousness  is 
coming  forth  as  a  bridegroom  out  of  his  chamber,  and  the 
weary  night  is  melting  into  welcome  day  ;  let  us  hear  the 
Beloved's  voice  as  he  cries  to  us,  "  Arise,  my  love,  my  fair 
one,  and  come  away." 

It  seems  from  the  text  that  the  additions  to  the  church 
which  were  made  in  the  Pentecostal  spring-tide  did  not  occur 
always  in  one  form,  sometimes  they  came  in  crowds,  and 
at  other  times  by  gradual  increase.  Upon  one  day  there 
were  three  thousand  added — that  is  an  instance  of  conver- 
sion in  the  mass,  when  a  nation  is  born  at  once.  In  such 
a  work  we  are  bound  to  believe  ;  I  mean  not  merely  in  the 
possibility  of  it,  but  in  the  probability  of  it,  for  it  stands 
to  reason  that  what  should  convince  one  man  in  a  particular 
condition  of  heart  would  as  readily  convince  three  thousand 
or  thirty  thousand  if  they  were  in  the  same  state.  Granted 
the  same  soil,  the  same  seed,  the  same  season,  and  the  same 
wonder-working  God,  and  I  cannot  imagine  any  reason  why 
a  limit  should  be  set  to  results.  The  Holy  Spirit  is  divine, 
and  consequently  he  knows  how  to  influence  all  kinds  of 
men,  and  he  can  by  the  instrumentalities  now  in  use  reach 
just  as  many  as  he  pleases.  I  recollect  well  when  I  first 
preached  in  London  a  remark  made  by  a  friend,  which 
very  greatly  encouraged  me  at  the  time,  and  has  proved 
true  in  my  experience.  When  he  heard  that  my  little  coun- 
try chapel  had  been  filled  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  village  in 
which  I  had  preached,  he  gave  me  hope  of  filling  a  far  larger 
place  in  London  ;  "  For,"  said  he,  "  what  will  draw  two 
hundred  will  draw  two  thousand,  and  what  was  useful  to 
a  few  may  be  made  just  as  useful  to  a  multitude."  I  saw  at 
once  that  it  was  so.    When  we  are  dealing  with  spiritua, 


50 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


forces  we  have  not  to  calculate  by  pouncls  and  ounces,  or  by 
so  many  horse  power.  We  have  not  to  think  of  quantity. 
As  an  illustration  :  give  me  fire,  I  will  not  bargain  for  a 
furnace,  give  me  but  a  single  candle,  and  a  city  or  a  forest 
may  soon  be  in  a  blaze.  A  spark  is  quite  sufficient  to  begin 
with,  for  fire  multiplies  itself  ;  so  give  us  the  truth,  a  single 
voice,  and  the  Holy  Spirit  with  it,  and  none  can  say  where 
the  sacred  conflagration  will  end.  One  Jonah  sufficed  to 
subdue  all  Nineveh  by  one  monotonous  sentence  oft  re- 
peated, and  despite  the  weakness  of  our  present  instrumen- 
tality, if  God  does  but  bless  the  gospel,  there  is  no  reason 
why  it  should  not  speedily  be  felt  by  the  whole  of  London. 
The  sermon  preached  by  Peter  at  Pentecost  was  the  arrow 
of  the  Lord's  deliverance  to  three  thousand,  and  there  is 
no  reason  why  the  Lord  should  not  cause  one  of  ours  to 
be  the  same.  Three  thousand  cannot  be  converted  if  only  a 
hundred  are  present  to  hear ;  but  with  this  vast  assembly 
and  thousands  of  smaller  ones,  within  gunshot,  why  should 
not  the  slain  of  the  Lord  be  many  ?  Assuredly  the  divine 
Comforter  can  as  readily  bless  three  millions  as  three  indi- 
viduals. 

But  it  would  appear  from  our  text  that  the  additions 
to  the  Pentecostal  church  were  not  made  in  a  mass  at  all 
times.  The  Spirit  of  God  was  still  with  them,  but  their 
increase  was  more  gradual.  "  The  Lord  added  to  the  church 
daily  of  such  as  should  be  saved."  You  have  seen  a  heavy 
shower  of  rain  in  the  spring  ;  in  a  moment  a  big  drop  has 
fallen  upon  the  pavement,  and  before  you  were  ready  to 
escape  from  it  a  deluge  followed,  so  plenteous  that  you  half 
suspected  a  cloud  had  been  rent  in  twain  right  over  your 
head  :  such  a  sudden  and  impetuous  shower  may  serve  for  a 
figure  of  the  conversion  of  three  thousand  souls  at  once. 
But  at  other  times  rain  has  fallen  gently,  and  has  continued 
to  descend  hour  by  hour,  a  soft,  warm,  spring  watering, 
which  in  its  own  way  and  fashion  has  done  its  work  of 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH.  51 

blessing  quite  as  surely  as  the  heavier  downpour.  We  must 
be  very  thankful  if  we  do  not  see  three  thousand  converted 
in  one  day  ;  if  we  see  three  hundred  every  day  for  ten  days, 
or  if  we  see  thirty  every  day  for  a  hundred  days  ;  we  ought 
indeed  to  be  grateful  for  all  success  so  long  as  sinners  do 
really  come  to  Jesus.  Whether  they  come  in  troops,  or 
one  by  one,  we  will  welcome  them  ;  the  woman  who  lost 
her  money  was  glad  to  find  one  piece,  although  she  would 
have  been  even  more  glad  to  have  found  a  purseful  if  they 
had  been  lost. 

I  want  you  to  think  about  additions  to  the  church  as 
they  used  to  occur  among  the  early  Christians.  Certain 
people  are  always  talking  about  the  "early  church,"  and 
very  queer  notions  they  seem  to  have  of  the  aforesaid  early 
church.  Their  early  church  was  very  different  from  any- 
thing we  meet  with  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  for  it  was 
very  particular  in  its  architecture,  millinery  and  music. 
This  "  early  church  "  could  not  worship  at  all  unless  it  had  a 
visible  altar,  with  reredos  and  frontal,  at  which  gentlemen 
in  gorgeous  attire  of  blue  and  scarlet  and  fine  linen  made  pos- 
tures many,  and  bowings  not  a  few.  The  "early  church/'  it 
seems,  believed  in  baptismal  regeneration,  transubstantiation, 
priestcraft,  and  sacramental  efficacy.  Well,  that  may  be  or 
may  not  be  ;  but  there  was  an  earlier  church  which  had  no 
such  notions,  and  it  is  for  us  to  get  right  away  from  all  such 
early  churches  to  the  earlier  church  or  the  earliest  church, 
and  there,  I  warrant  you,  you  shall  find  no  priestcraft,  nor  non- 
sense of  sacramental  efficacy  ;  but  simplicity,  and  truth,  and 
the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  The  early  church  so  much 
admired  by  Anglicans  was  a  degenerate  vine,  a  field  of  wheat 
and  tares,  a  mass  leavened  with  antichristian  error,  in  a 
word  a  baptized  heathenism.  After  its  own  fashion,  it  set 
up  again  the  many  deities  of  the  heathen,  only  calling  them 
saints  instead  of  gods,  putting  the  Virgin  into  the  place  of 
Venus,  and  setting  up  Peter  or  Paul  in  the  niches  formerly 


52  ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 

occupied  by  Saturn  or  Mars.  Our  present  "  revived  early 
church  "  is  only  Paganism  with  a  border  of  crosses.  We  are 
resolved  to  return  to  the  primitive  church  of  which  we  read, 
"  then  they  that  gladly  received  the  word  were  baptized  and 
they  continued  steadfastly  in  the  apostles'  doctrine."  In 
connection  with  this  church  we  shall  handle  our  subject, 
trusting  to  the  Holy  Spirit  to  be  with  us  as  with  them. 

I.  First,  then,  additions  to  the  church,  what  about 
them  ?  "  The  Lord  added  to  the  church  daily  such  as  should 
be  saved." 

It  seems  to  have  teen  the  custom  in  the  earliest  times  for 
persons  'who  had  been  converted  to  Chr  ist  to  join  themselves 
ivith  the  church  of  Jesus  Christ.  From  that  fact,  I  feel  per- 
suaded that  they  did  not  conceal  their  convictions.  It  is 
a  strong  temptation  with  many  to  say,  "I  have  believed 
in  Jesus,  but  that  is  a  matter  between  God  and  my  own  soul, 
there  can  be  no  need  that  I  should  tell  this  to  others.  Can 
I  not  go  quietly  to  heaven  and  be  a  Nicodemus,  or  a  Joseph 
of  Arimathea  ?  "  To  which  I  reply,  Yes,  you  can  go  quietly 
to  heaven,  and  we  hope  you  will  do  so,  but  that  is  a  different 
thing  from  being  cowardly  and  ashamed  of  Christ.  We  shall 
not  object  to  your  being  a  Nicodemus  if  you  will  go  with 
him  when  he  carries  spices  to  the  grave  of  Jesus  ;  and  you 
may  be  a  Joseph  of  Arimathea  if  you  will  attend  him  when 
he  goes  boldly  unto  Pilate  and  begs  the  body  of  Jesus.  Neither 
of  these  two  brethren  were  cowardly  after  the  cross  had  been 
set  up  before  their  eyes,  neither  were  they  ashamed  to  iden- 
tify themselves  with  Christ  crucified.  Follow  them,  not  in  the 
infancy  of  their  love,  but  in  its  maturer  days.  Remember, 
dear  friends,  the  promise  of  the  gospel  runs  thus  : — "  He  that 
with  his  heart  believeth,  and  with  his  mouth  maketh  confes- 
sion of  him,  shall  be  saved."  Do  not,  I  charge  you,  neglect 
one  half  of  the  command  !  The  gospel  commission  which 
we  have  received  is  this  : — "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world  and 
preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature.    He  that  believeth  and 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


53 


is  baptized  shall  be  saved."  That  is  the  message  as  we 
find  it,  we  did  not  insert  the  clause  concerning  baptism, 
neither  dare  we  leave  it  out,  or  advise  you  to  neglect  it.  I 
give  you  the  very  words  of  the  Saviour.  Do  not,  therefore, 
divide  the  gospel  command  in  order  to  throw  half  of  it 
behind  your  back,  but  both  believe  and  avow  your  belief, 
and  be  added  to  the  church. 

It  is  quite  clear,  too,  that  believers  in  those  days  did  not 
try  to  go  to  heaven  alone.  There  has  been  a  great  deal  said 
in  these  latter  days  about  being  simply  a  Christian  and  not 
joining  any  particular  church — a  piece  of  cant  mostly,  and 
in  all  cases  a  mistake.  In  the  name  of  unity  this  system 
is  preached  up,  and  yet  it  is  clear  to  all  that  it  is  the  reverse 
of  unity,  and  is  calculated  to  put  an  end  to  all  visible  church 
fellowship.  The  good  people  mentioned  in  our  text  joined 
themselves  with  the  church  of  God  in  Jerusalem  at  once. 
I  dare  say  that  even  in  those  days,  had  they  criticised  the 
church,  they  would  have  found  faults  in  her,  certainly 
within  a  few  weeks  great  faults  had  to  be  remedied  :  but 
these  converts  felt  that  the  society  at  Jerusalem  was  the 
church  of  Christ,  and,  therefore,  they  joined  themselves 
thereto.  All  of  you  can  meet  with  churches  of  Jesus  Christ 
if  you  choose  to  look  for  them.  If  you  wait  for  a  per- 
fect church,  you  must  wait  until  you  get  to  heaven  ;  and 
even  if  you  could  find  a  perfect  assembly  on  earth,  I  am 
sure  they  would  not  admit  you  to  their  fellowship,  for  you 
are  not  perfect  yourself.  Find  out  those  people  who  are 
!  nearest  to  the  Scriptures,  who  hold  the  truth  in  doctrine 
i  and  in  ordinance,  and  are  most  like  the  apostolic  church, 
and  then  cast  in  your  lot  with  them,  and  you  will  be  blessed 
in  the  deed.  Consider  the  matter,  and  reflect  that  if  it 
i  would  be  right  for  you  to  remain  out  of  church  fellowship, 
|  it  must  be  right  for  every  other  believer  to  remain  in  the 
same  condition,  and  then  there  would  be  no  visible  church 
j:  on  earth  at  all,  and  no  body  of  people  banded  together  to 


54 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


maintain  the  Christian  ordinances.  Christian  fellowship, 
especially  in  the  breaking  of  bread,  and  the  maintenance 
of  an  evangelistic  ministry,  would  become  an  impossibility, 
if  no  one  openly  avowed  the  Saviour's  cause.  Act  then  ac- 
cording to  your  duty,  and  if  you  be  a  Christian,  join  with 
Christians  ;  if  you  love  the  Master,  love  the  servants  ;  if  you 
love  the  Captain,  unite  with  the  arm}',  and  join  that  regiment 
of  it  which  you  think  cleaves  closest  to  the  Master's  words. 

Observe  next,  that  the  persons  who  were  received  at  Pente- 
cost ivere  added  to  the  church  by  the  Lord.  Does  anybody  else 
ever  add  to  the  church  ?  Oh,  yes,  the  devil  too  often  thrusts 
in  his  servants.  Who  was  it  that  added  Judas,  and  Ananias 
and  Sapphira,  and  Simon  Magus,  and  Demas  to  the  church  ? 
Who  was  it  that  stole  forth  by  night  and  sowed  tares  among  the 
wheat  ?  That  evil  spirit  is  not  dead,  he  is  still  busy  enough 
in  this  department,  and  continually  adds  to  the  church  such 
as  are  not  saved.  His  are  the  mixed  multitude  which  infest 
the  camp  of  Israel,  and  are  the  first  to  fall  a  lusting ;  his  the 
Achans  who  bring  a  curse  upon  the  tribes  ;  his  are  those  of 
whom  Jude  says,  "  certain  men  crept  in  unawares  who  were 
before  of  old  ordained  to  this  condemnation."  These  adul- 
terate the  church,  and  by  so  doing,  they  weaken  and  defile 
it,  and  bring  it  much  grief  and  dishonor.  When  the  Lord 
adds  to  the  church,  that  is  quite  another  matter.  Moreover 
the  church  itself  cannot  avoid  adding  some  who  should  not 
be  received.  With  the  greatest  possible  care  and  prudence 
we  shall  still  make  mistakes,  and  some  are  thus  added  whom 
the  Lord  never  added  to  the  church.  You  have  heard  Mr. 
Hill's  story  of  meeting  a  man  in  the  street  one  night,  who 
hiccuped  up  to  him  and  said,  "  How  do  you  do  Mr.  Hill  ?  I 
am  one  of  your  converts."  "  Yes,"  said  Rowland,  "  I  should 
say  you  are,  but  you  are  none  of  God's,  or  else  you  would  not 
be  drunk."  Converts  of  that  sort  are  far  too  numerous, — 
converts  of  the  preacher,  converts  of  friends,  or  converts 
of  a  certain  fashion  of  making  profession,  but  not  true-born 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


55 


children  of  the  Lord.  Dear  friends,  I  invite  all  of  yon  who 
are  thinking  about  joining  the  church,  to  search  and  see 
whether  you  are  such  as  the  Lord  would  add  to  a  church. 
If  you  are,  you  have  been  converted  by  the  Lord,  you  have 
been  wounded  by  the  Lord,  and  you  have  been  healed  by  the 
Lord,  and  in  the  Lord  is  your  righteousness  and  trust.  It 
has  not  been  man's  doing  ;  whoever  may  have  been  the  in- 
strument, the  Holy  Spirit  has  wrought  all  your  works  in  you. 
You  must  have  been  the  subject  of  a  divine  agency  ;  some- 
thing more  than  you  could  do  for  yourself  or  any  man  could 
do  for  you  must  have  been  wrought  in  you  by  the  Lord.  He 
who  made  you  has  new  made  you.  Oh,  dear  friends,  who  love 
the  Lord,  join  in  earnest  prayer  that  the  Lord  would  add  to 
the  church  daily  of  the  saved  ones,  for  we  long  for  such. 

Then,  additions  to  the  church  of  the  right  hind  are  de- 
scribed in  the  text  by  the  words  "  such  as  should  be  saved" 
only  those  words  are  not  quite  a  correct  translation  of  the 
original.  I  suppose  they  were  borrowed  from  the  vulgar 
Latin,  they  are  not  in  the  Greek.  The  translation  should 
be  either  "  The  Lord  added  to  the  church  daily  the  saved," 
or  "  The  Lord  added  to  the  church  daily  those  who  were  being 
saved."  Saved  persons  were  added  to  the  church,  and  only 
such  are  fit  to  be  added.  We  are  not  authorized  to  receive 
into  our  number  those  who  desire  to  be  saved,  as  certain 
brethren  do  ;  I  commend  their  design  in  so  doing,  but  I  am 
sure  they  have  not  Scripture  for  it.  Those  who  are  being 
saved,  in  whom  the  work  of  salvation  is  really  begun,  are  the 
only  proper  candidates,  and  these  are  spoken  of  in  the  forty- 
fourth  verse  as  "  believers."  The  proper  persons  to  be  added 
to  the  visible  church  of  Christ  are  those  who  believe  to  the 
salvation  of  their  souls,  who  are  from  day  to  day  experienc- 
ing the  saving  power  of  the  name  of  Jesus  by  being  delivered 
from  sin,  by  being  saved  from  the  customs  of  the  world,  by 
being  saved  in  the  sense  of  sanctified  from  the  various  cor- 
ruptions and  lusts  which  rule  among  the  sons  of  men. 


56 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


These  are  the  sort  of  persons  who  should  be  added  to 
the  church.  So  let  the  question  go  round, — Am  I  saved  ? 
Have  I  believed  in  Jesus  ?  If  I  have,  the  process  of  salva- 
tion within  me  is  going  on,  I  am  delivered  from  the  reig:iing, 
ruling  power  of  sin  each  day  ;  I  am  being  kept  by  the  power 
of  God  through  faith  unto  salvation,  and  I  shall  be  kept 
and  presented  at  last  spotless  before  the  presence  of  God 
with  exceeding  joy.  We  set  the  door  wide  open  to  all  who 
are  saved,  however  little  their  faith  may  be.  The  church 
has  no  right  to  exclude  any  of  the  saved  because  their 
knowledge  or  experience  is  not  that  of  advanced  believers. 
If  they  believe  in  Jesus  and  are  saved,  the  babes  are  of  the 
family  and  ought  to  be  received,  the  lambs  belong  to  the 
flock  and  ought  not  to  be  kept  outside  the  fold.  Church 
membership  is  not  a  certificate  of  advanced  Christianity,  it 
is  simply  the  recognition  of  the  profession  of  saving  faith  in 
Jesus  Christ.  May  the  Lord  add  to  the  church  many  of  the 
saved,  and  may  we  sit  at  the  Lord's  table  together  and  sing 
of  redeeming  grace  and  dying  love,  as  those  who  love  the 
Saviour.  Come  hither,  ye  who  are  the  Lord's  little  ones, 
but  far  hence,  ye  unbelievers  and  unregenerate. 

Again  the  text  says,  "  The  Lord  added  to  the  church 
daily  such  as  should  be  saved."  They  were  really  "added" 
to  the  church.  I  am  afraid  certain  persons'  names  are  added 
to  the  church,  but  they  themselves  are  not.  They  increase 
our  numbers,  they  are  added  like  figures  on  a  slate,  but  they 
do  not  augment  our  strength.  The  church  is  a  vital  body, 
and  to  add  to  a  vitalized  body  requires  a  divine  operation. 
The  church  is  like  a  tree  ;  if  you  want  to  add  to  a  tree  you 
cannot  take  a  dead  bough  and  tie  it  on,  that  is  not  adding  to 
it,  but  encumbering  it.  To  add  to  a  tree  there  must  be  graft- 
ing done,  which  requires  skill,  and  the  branch,  itself  alive, 
must  be  knit  to  the  living  trunk  by  a  living  junction,  so  that 
the  vital  sap  of  the  tree  shall  flow  into  the  grafted  bough. 
A  true  church  is  a  living  thing,  and  only  living  men  and 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


57 


women  made  alive  by  the  Spirit  of  God  are  fit  to  be  grafted 
into  it,  and  the  grafting  must  be  made  by  the  Lord  himself, 
otherwise  it  is  no  true  addition  to  the  church  of  God.  Some 
members  are  only  tied  on  to  the  church,  and  they  are  neither 
use  nor  ornament,  as  a  dead  bough  fastened  to  a  tree  would 
add  no  beauty  to  it,  and  would  certainly  bring  forth  no  fruit. 
There  must  be  a  living  union,  so  that  the  life  which  is  in  the 
church  shall  join  with  the  life  that  is  in  the  man,  and  the 
one  life  of  the  one  quickening  Spirit  shall  flow  through  the 
whole  of  the  body.  When  I  hear  professors  railing  at  the 
churches  to  which  they  belong,  when  I  see  disunion  and  dis- 
satisfaction among  church  members,  I  can  well  understand 
that  the  Lord  never  added  them ;  but  it  would  be  a  great 
mercy  to  the  church  if  the  Lord  would  take  them  away. 
When  the  Lord  adds  them,  added  they  are  for  time  and 
eternity,  and  they  can  say  to  the  church,  "  Where  thou 
dwellest  I  will  dwell ;  thy  people  shall  be  my  people,  for  thy 
God  is  my  God." 

One  more  point  iu  the  text  is  this,  that  "  the  Lord  added 
to  the  church  daily  such  as  should  be  saved."  There  were 
additions  to  the  church  every  day.  Some  churches,  if 
•  they  have  an  addition  once  iu  twelve  months  make  as  much 
noise  over  that  one  as  a  hen  does  when  she  has  laid  an  egg. 
Now,  in  the  early  church  they  would  not  have  been  contented 
with  so  small  an  increase  ;  they  would  have  gone  weeping  and 
mourning  all  over  Jerusalem  if  there  had  been  additions  but 
once  in  the  year.  But,  cries  one,  "  If  we  have  an  addition 
every  month,  is  not  that  enough  ?  "  Well,  it  is  enough  for 
some  people,  but  when  hearts  are  warm  and  full  of  love  to 
Christ,  we  want  him  to  be  praised  from  the  rising  of  the  sun 
unto  the  going  down  of  the  same,  and  we  long  to  have  added 
to  the  church  daily  of  such  as  are  saved ;  and  why  not  ? 
But,  you  reply,  we  are  not  daily  preaching.  That  may  be, 
but  we  ought  to  be  ;  if  not  daily  in  the  pulpit,  there  should 
be  the  daily  preaching  of  the  life,  and  if  all  the  members  of 


58 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


the  church  were  daily  preaching  of  Jesus  Christ  from  house 
to  house,  a  daily  sowing  would  bring  a  daily  reaping  ;  if  we 
were  daily  praying  with  earnestness,  and  daily  using  every 
effort  we  could  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  if  daily 
the  church  abode  in  fellowship  with  her  Master,  we  should 
see  added  to  it  daily  of  those  who  are  saved.  "  Why  do  we 
not  see  it,"  says  one,  "in  many  churches  ?"  Why,  because 
many  churches  do  not  believe  in  it.  If  there  were  many 
converts  added  to  them,  they  would  say,  "  Yes,  we  hear  of 
a  great  many  additions,  but  what  are  they  ?  We  hope  they 
will  hold  on,"  or  some  such  ungenerous  remark.  If  to  some 
churches  there  should  come  a  large  increase,  there  are  breth- 
ren who  would  not  believe  it  to  be  genuine,  and  would  de- 
spise the  little  ones.  God  will  not  cause  his  children  to  be 
born  where  there  are  none  to  nurse  them  ;  he  will  be  sure 
not  to  send  converts  to  churches  which  do  not  want  them. 
He  will  not  have  his  lambs  snarled  over  as  if  they  were  so 
many  young  wolves,  and  kept  out  in  the  cold  for  months 
together  to  see  whether  they  will  howl  or  bleat.  He  loves 
to  see  his  people  watchful  for  new  converts,  and  watchful 
over  them.  The  Good  Shepherd  would  have  us  feed  his 
lambs,  gather  them  in  from  the  cold  field  of  the  world,  and 
carry  them  to  some  warm  sheltered  place,  and  nurture  them 
for  him.  When  he  sees  a  church  ready  to  do  that,  then  will 
he  send  them  his  lambs,  but  not  till  then. 

II.  That  brings  me  to  the  second  point,  which  is  this  : — 
Additions  to  the.  church,  under  what  conditions  may 
we  expect  them  on  a  large  scale  ? 

Turn  to  the  chapter  again  and  we  shall  have  our  answer. 
We  may  expect  additions  to  every  church  of  God  on  a  large 
scale  when  she  has  first  of  all  a  Holy  Ghost  ministry.  Peter 
was  no  doubt  a  man  of  considerable  natural  abilities,  he  was 
also  a  warm-hearted,  fervent  man,  just  such  an  one  as  would 
have  power  over  his  fellow-men,  because  of  the  enthusiasm 
which  dwelt  in  himself  \  but  for  all  this  Peter  had  never 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


59 


seen  three  thousand  persons  converted  until  he  had  been 
baptized  with  the  Holy  Ghost.  After  the  tongue  of  fire  had 
sat  upon  Peter's  head,  he  was  another  man  from  what  he 
had  ever  been  before.  If,  dear  brethren,  we  are  to  see  large 
multitudes  converted,  the  power  of  the  preacher  must  lie  in 
his  being  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost.  I  fear  me  that  many 
churches  would  not  be  content  with  a  ministry  whose  power 
would  lie  solely  in  the  Holy  Spirit.  I  mean  this,  that  they 
judge  a  minister  by  his  elaboration  of  style,  or  beauty  of 
imagery,  or  degree  of  culture  ;  and  if  he  be  a  man  of  such 
refined  speech  that  only  a  select  few  can  understand  him,  he 
is  a  favorite  with  what  is  considered  to  be  "a  respectable 
church."  Some  despise  a  preacher  whom  the  common  peo- 
ple hear  gladly,  who  uses  great  plainness  of  speech,  and 
discards  the  words  which  man's  wisdom  teaches.  They 
complain  that  he  is  only  fit  to  address  the  tag-rag  of  the 
people,  and  for  this  they  turn  their  backs  upon  him.  They 
want  not  the  fire  of  the  Spirit,  but  the  flash  of  oratory  ;  not 
the  rushing  wind  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  but  the  perfumed 
zephyrs  of  "high  culture."  The  jingle  of  rhetoric  has  more 
attraction  for  them  than  the  certain  sound  of  the  trumpets  of 
the  sanctuary.  May  God  have  mercy  upon  the  church  that 
has  got  into  such  a  miserable  state,  and  is  so  wanting  in  true 
education,  for  where  a  church  is  educated  by  the  Lord  she 
understands  that  salvation  is  not  by  might  nor  power,  but 
by  the  Spirit  of  God.  Plainness  of  speech  is  the  perfection 
of  gospel  utterance,  for  the  Master  himself  so  spake.  Men 
of  studied  elocution,  who  can  pile  up  a  climax,  and  cap  it 
with  a  piece  of  poetry,  are  not  the  men  whom  God  the  Holy 
Spirit  honors  to  be  soul-winners.  Have  you  not  heard  fine 
orations,  which  have  perfectly  charmed  you  by  their  beauty, 
and  yet  after  you  have  heard  them  you  have  felt  that  if  the 
Lord  did  bless  such  sermons  to  the  conversion  of  anybody  it 
would  be  a  novelty  upon  the  face  of  -the  earth,  for  there  was 
little  of  Christ  in  them,  and  none  of  the  unction  of  the  Holy 


60 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHUKCH. 


One  ?  Great  sermons  are  often  great  sins,  and  "  intellectual 
treats"  are  frequently  a  mess  of  savory  pottage  made  of  un- 
clean meats. 

A  Holy  Ghost  ministry,  if  Peter  be  the  model,  is  one 
which  is  bold,  clear,  telling,  persuasive — one  which  tells 
men  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  and  that  they  have  crucified 
him,  and  calls  upon  them  to  repent  and  turn  unto  the  Lord. 
The  truly  sent  preacher  speaks  out  straight  and  plain,  and 
home  to  the  conscience,  whether  men  will  hear  or  whether 
they  will  forbear.  The  Holy  Ghost  minister  chooses  Jesus 
for  his  theme,  as  Peter  did.  He  did  not  speak  to  them  about 
modern  science  and  the  way  of  twisting  Scriptures  into  agree- 
ment with  it.  He  cared  nothing  for  the  maundering  of  the 
Rabbis  or  the  philosophies  of  the  Greeks  ;  but  he  went  right 
on  setting  forth  Christ  crucified  and  Christ  risen  from  the 
dead.  .  When  he  had  preached  Christ,  he  made  a  pointed 
personal  appeal  to  them  and  said,  "  Kepent  and  be  baptized 
every  one  of  you."  He  was  not  afraid  to  give  such  an  exhor- 
tation ;  he  was  not  like  some  who  say,  "  We  must  warn  sin- 
ners and  then  leave  them  ;  we  may  preach  Christ  to  them, 
but  may  not  bid  them  repent ; "  but  he  came  boldly  forth 
with  the  gospel  exhortation  and  left  it  to  his  Master  to  send 
it  home  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  That  was  the  sort 
of  sermon  which  God  blesses.  The  man  was  full  of  God,  and 
God  shone  through  the  man,  and  worked  with  him,  and  re- 
mission of  sins  was  sought  for  and  was  found  through  repent- 
ance and  faith  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  by  a  vast  number  of 
souls.  May  God  send  to  all  his  churches  a  Holy  Ghost 
ministry  ! 

But  if  there  are  to  be  many  additions  to  the  church  it 
must  next  be  a  Holy  Ghost  church.  Note  that.  What  is  a 
Holy  Ghost  church  ?  Well,  it  is  a  church  baptized  into  his 
power,  and  this  will  be  known  first  by  its  being  steadfast. 
Read  the  42d  verse,  "And  they  continued  steadfast."  He 
will  not  bless  a  church  which  is  excited  and  then  relapses, 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


61 


is  carried  away  by  every  novelty,  and  does  not  know  what 
it  believes,  but  a  church  which  abides  in  Jesus  and  in  his 
truth. 

They  were  steadfast  in  four  points.  In  the  apostle's  doc- 
trine. They  were  a  doctrinal  church,  they  believed  in  being 
steadfast  in  fixed  truth  ;  they  did  not  belong  to  the  shifty 
generation  of  men  who  plead  that  their  views  are  progres- 
sive, and  that  they  cannot  hold  themselves  bound  by  a  plain 
creed.  Dear  brethren  aud  sisters,  never  give  up  the  grand 
old  truths  of  the  gospel.  Let  no  excitement,  even  though  it 
be  the  whirlwind  of  a  revival,  ever  sweep  you  off  your  feet 
concerning  the  great  doctrines  of  the  cross.  If  God  does  not 
save  men  by  truth  he  certainly  will  not  save  them  by  lies,  and 
if  the  old  gospel  is  not  competent  to  work  a  revival,  then  we 
will  do  without  the  revival ;  we  will  keep  the  old  truth,  any- 
how, come  what  may  !    Our  flag  is  nailed  to  the  mast. 

Next  they  were  steadfast  in  fellowship.  They  loved  each 
other,  and  they  continued  doing  so.  They  conversed  with 
one  another  about  the  things  of  God,  and  they  did  not  give 
up  the  converse.  They  helped  each  other  when  they  were 
in  need,  and  they  continued  in  such  liberality.  They  were 
true  brethren,  and  their  fellowship  was  not  broken. 

Next  they  continued  in  the  breaking  of  bread,  which  is  a 
delightful  ordinance,  and  never  to  be  despised  or  under- 
estimated. As  often  as  they  could  they  showed  Christ's 
death  till  he  should  come.  They  delighted  to  enjoy  the 
dear  memorials  of  his  sacred  passion,  both  in  the  assembly 
and  from  house  to  house. 

They  remained  also  steadfast  in  prayer.  Mark  that!  God 
cannot  bless  a  church  which  does  not  pray,  and  churches  must 
increase  in  supplication  if  they  would  increase  in  strength. 
Sacred  importunity  must  besiege  the  throne  of  God,  and  then 
the  blessing  will  be  yielded.  Oh,  children  of  the  heavenly 
King,  ye  hamper  the  Spirit  and  hinder  the  blessing  if  ye 
restrain  prayer. 


62 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


Here  were  four  points,  then,  in  which  the  church  was  tl 
steadfast,  and  God  blessed  it.  at 

Note  next  that  it  was  a  united  church.  We  read  of  I  f 
them  that  they  were  so  united  that  they  had  all  things  in  \  k 
common,  and  they  continued  daily  with  one  accord  in  the  I 
temple.  There  were  no  parties  among  them,  no  petty  ff 
strifes  and  divisions,  they  loved  the  Lord  too  well  for  that,  tl 
The  Sacred  Dove-  takes  his  flight  when  strife  comes  in.  If  f 
you  divide  the  church  within  itself,  you  also  divide  it  from  tl 
the  mighty  operations  of  the  Spirit  of  G-od.  Be  ye  full  of  tl 
love  one  to  another,  and  then  ye  may  expect  that  God  the  e1 
Holy  Ghost  will  fill  you  with  blessing.  \ 

They  were  a  generous  church  as  well  as  a  united  church.  G 
They  were  so  generous  that  they  threw  in  their  property  into  i  1( 
a  common  stock  lest  any  should  be  in  need.    They  were  not  I  I 
communists,  they  were  Christians  ;  and  the  difference  between  j  \ 
a  communist  and  a  Christian  is  this — a  communist  says,  "  All  i 
yours  is  mine  ; "  while  a  Christian  says,  "  All  mine  is  yours  ; "  a 
and  that  is  a  very  different  thing.    The  one  is  for  getting, 
and  the  other  for  giving.    These  believers  acted  in  such  a 
generous  spirit  one  to  another,  that  it  seemed  as  if  nobody  j 
accounted  that  what  he  had  belonged  to  himself,  but  gener- 
ously gave  of  it  to  the  necessities  of  others.    I  do  not  believe  j 
the  Lord  will  ever  bless  a  stingy  church.    There  are  churches 
whose  minister  has  anxiously  to  inquire  how  he  shall  provide 
food  and  raiment  for  his  household,  and  yet  these  churches 
are  not  very  poor.    There  are  churches  where  more  is  paid  I 
per  annum  for  cleaning  the  shoes  of  the  worshipers  than 
they  spend  upon  the  cause  of  Christ ;  and  where  this  is  the 
case  no  great  good  will  be  done.    The  Lord  will  never  bless 
a  synagogue  of  misers  ;  if  they  are  churls  they  may  keep  i 
their  worship  to  themselves,  for  God  is  known  as  a  generous 
God,  and  he  loves  to  have  generous  people. 

Again,  these  people  were  in  such  a  condition  that  their 
houses  and  homes  were  holy  places.    I  want  you  to  notice 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH.  63 

i 

this,  that  they  were  breaking  bread  from  house  to  house, 
and  did  eat  their  meat  with  gladness  and  singleness  of  heart. 
They  did  not  think  that  religion  was  meant  only  for  Sun- 
days, and  for  what  men  now-a-days  call  the  House  of  God. 
Their  own  houses  were  houses  of  God,  and  their  own  meals 
were  so  mixed  and  mingled  with  the  Lord's  Supper  that  to 
this  day  the  most  cautious  student  of  the  Bible  cannot  tell 
when  they  left  off  eating  their  common  meals,  and  when 
they  began  eating  the  Supper  of  the  Lord.  They  elevated 
their  meals  into  diets  for  worship ;  they  so  consecrated 
everything  with  prayer  and  praise  that  all  around  them  was 
holiness  unto  the  Lord.  I  wish  our  houses  were  thus  dedi- 
cated unto  the  Lord,  so  that  we  worshipped  God  all  the  day 
long,  and  made  our  dwellings  temples  for  the  living  God. 
A  great  dignitary  not  long  ago  informed  us  that  there  is 
great  efficacy  in  daily  prayer  in  the  parish  church  ;  he  even 
asserted  that,  however  few  might  attend,  it  was  more  accept- 
able than  any  other  worship.  I  suppose  that  prayer  in  the 
parish  church  with  nobody  to  join  in  it  but  the  vicar  and 
the  beadle  is  far  more  effectual  than  the  largest  family 
gathering  in  the  house  at  home.  This  was  evidently  his 
lordship's  idea,  and  I  suppose  the  literature  which  his  lord- 
ship was  best  acquainted  with  was  of  such  an  order  as  to 
have  led  him  to  draw  that  inference.  Had  he  been  ac- 
quainted with  the  Bible  and  such  old  fashioned  books,  he 
would  have  learned  rather  differently,  and  if  some  one 
should  make  him  a  present  of  a  New  Testament,  it  might 
perhaps  suggest  a  few  new  thoughts  to  him.  Does  God 
need  a  house  ?  He  who  made  the  heavens  and  the  earth, 
does  he  dwell  in  temples  made  with  hands  ?  What  gross 
ignorance  is  this  !  No  house  beneath  the  sky  is  more  holy 
than  the  place  where  a  Christian  lives,  and  eats,  and  drinks, 
and  sleeps,  and  praises  the  Lord  in  all  that  he  does,  and  there 
is  no  worship  more  heavenly  than  that  which  is  presented  by 
holy  families,  devoted  to  his  fear.    To  sacrifice  home  worship 


64 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


to  public  worship  is  a  most  evil  course  of  action;  Morning 
and  evening  devotion  in  a  cottage  is  infinitely  more  pleasing 
in  the  sight  of  God  than  all  the  cathedral  pomp  which  J 
delights  the  carnal  eye  and  ear.    Every  truly  Christian 
household  is  a  church,  and  as  such  it  is  competent  for  the  ] 
discharge  of  any  function  of  divine  worship,  whatever  io 
may  be.    Are  we  not  all  priests  ?    Why  do  we  need  to  call 
in  others  to  make  devotion  a  performance  ?    Let  every  man 
be  a  priest  in  his  own  house.    Are  you  not  all  kings  if  you  J 
love  the  Lord  ?    Then  make  your  houses  palaces  of  joy  and  l| 
temples  of  holiness.    One  reason  why  the  early  church  had  J 
such  a  blessing  was  because  her  members  had  such  homes. 
When  we  are  like  them  we  shall  have  "added  to  the  church  I 
daily  of  the  saved." 

I  have  already  mentioned  that  they  were  a  praying 
church,  and  that  accounted  for  the  increase.    They  were  a 
devout  church,  a  church  which  did  not  forget  any  part  of 
the  Lord's  will.    They  were  a  baptized  church,  and  they  I 
were  a  bread-breaking  church,  so  that  they  were  obedient  to  I 
Christ  in  both  ordinances.    They  were  also  a  joyful  church. 
We  find  that  they  ate  their  meat  with  gladness.  Their 
religion  was  not  of  the  sombre  hue  which  comes  of  doubting  I 
and  fearing.    They  were  believers  in  a  risen  Eedeemer,  and  I 
though  they  knew  that  they  would  soon  be  persecuted,  they 
so  rejoiced  that  everybody  could  read  heaven  shining  on  their 
faces,  and  might  have  known  that  they  believed  in  the 
blessed  gospel,  for  they  were  a  blessed  people.    They  were 
also  upraising  church,  for  it  is  said  they  "  praised  God,  and 
they  had  favor  with  all  the  people."    Oh,  may  the  Lord 
make  this  church  and  all  the  churches  around  us  to  be  as 
holy  and  joyful  as  that  apostolic  community. 

III.  I  must  conclude  with  a  word  upon  that  which  I 
wanted  most  of  all  to  say  :  What  responsibilities  do 

THESE  ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH  BRING  TO  US  ?  v 

To  you  who  are  to  be  added  to  the  church  to-night,  and 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


65 


I  thank  God  you  are  so  many,*  it  involves  this  responsi- 
bility : — Do  not  come  in  among  us  unless  you  are  saved. 
Judge  yourselves  with  honesty,  examine  yourselves  with 
care,  and  although  you  have  gone  as  far  as  you  have,  yet 
to-night,  before  I  give  you  the  right-hand  of  fellowship,  if 
you  are  conscious  that  you  are  not  what  you  profess  to  be,  I  do 
beseech  you  still  stand  back.  If  you  are  the  weakest  of  the 
weak,  and  the  feeblest  of  the  feeble,  yet,  if  you  are  sincere, 
come  and  welcome  ;  but  if  you  are  not  sincere,  do  not  add 
to  your  sin  by  taking  upon  you  a  profession  which  you  can- 
not keep  up,  and  by  declaring  a  falsehood  before  the  Lord ; 
for  if  you  do  so,  remember  you  will  not  have  lied  unto  man, 
but  unto  God  himself  in  daring  to  avow  yourselves  Chris- 
tians, while  you  are  unbelievers.  Come  and  welcome  if  you 
are  believers,  and  when  you  come,  remember  that  the  responsi- 
bility which  you  undertake  in  God's  strength,  is  that  you  live 
to  prove  that  you  have  really  given  yourself  up  to  the  church, 
that  you  mean  to  serve  Christ  with  all  your  heart,  that  you 
will  seek  to  promote  the  holiness  and  unity  of  the  church 
which  you  join,  and  will  strive  to  do  nothing  to  dishonor 
her  good  name  or  to  grieve  the  Spirit  of  God.  In  joining 
the  church,  pray  to  be  continued  steadfast  in  doctrine  and 
fellowship.  Pray  for  more  grace,  that  you  may  be  filled 
with  the  Spirit  of  God.  Do  not  come  in  to  weaken  us,  we 
are  weak  enough  already.  Do  not  come  in  to  adulterate  our 
purity,  we  have  enough  impurity  even  now.  Pray  that  God 
may  make  you  a  real  increase  to  our  prayerfulness,  to  our 
holiness,  to  our  earnestness,  to  our  higher  life,  and  then 
come  and  welcome,  and  the  Lord  be  with  you  ! 

As  for  us  who  shall  receive  the  converts,  what  is  our 
responsibility  ?  "First,  to  welcome  them  heartily.  Let  us 
open  wide  the  door  of  our  hearts  and  say,  "  Come  and  wel- 
come," for  Jesus  Christ's  sake.  After  welcoming  them  we 
must  watch  over  them,  and  when  so  many  are  added,  double 
*  One  hundred  and  seven  were  to  be  received  in  the  evening. 


66 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CHURCH. 


care  is  needed.  Of  course,  no  two  pastors  can  possibly 
watch  over  this  vast  assembly  of  four  thousand  five  hundred 
professed  believers.  Let  the  watching  be  done  by  all  the 
members  ;  by  the  officers  of  the  church  first,  and  then  by 
every  individual.  I  am  very  thankful  that  out  of  the  cheer- 
ing number  to  be  brought  in  to-night  the  larger  proportion 
belong  to  the  families  of  the  church.  My  brethren  and  sis- 
ters already  in  Christ,  it  is  fortunate  for  these  young  people 
that  they  have  you  to  watch  over  them.  Never  let  it  be  said 
that  any  parent  discourages  his  child,  that  any  guardian  dis- 
courages the  young  after  they  have  come  forward  and  avowed 
their  faith.  If  you  notice  faults,  remember  you  have  faults 
yourselves ;  do  not  tauntingly  throw  the  failing  in  their 
teeth  as  some  have  unkindly  done.  Guide  them  and  cheer 
them  on.  Help  their  weakness,  bear  with  their  ignorance 
and  impetuosity,  and  correct  their  mistakes.  I  charge  you, 
my  beloved  sisters,  be  nursing  mothers  in  the  church,  and 
you,  my  brethren,  be  fathers  to  these  young  people,  that 
they  may  be  enabled  by  your  help  through  God's  Spirit  to 
hold  on  their  way.  It  is  an  evil  thing  to  receive  members, 
and  never  care  for  them  afterwards.  Among  so  many  some 
must  escape  our  supervision,  but  if  all  the  members  of  the 
church  were  watchful  this  could  not  be  ;  each  would  have 
some  one  to  care  for  him,  each  would  have  a  friend  to  whom 
to  tell  his  troubles  and  his  cares.  Watch  over  the  church, 
then,  I  pray  you. 

And  ye  elder  ones,  myself  chiefly  among  you,  let  our  ex- 
ample be  such  as  they  can  safely  follow.  Let  them  not  come 
into  the  church  to  find  us  cold.  Let  us  try,  as  we  see  these 
young  ones  coming  among  us,  to  grow  young  again  in  heart 
and  sympathy.  In  receiving  these  new  members  we  ought 
to  have,  dear  brethren,  an  access  of  new  strength,  and  £■ 
more  vigorous  life.  The  church  ought  to  be  giving  out 
more  light,  for  here  are  fresh  lamps  ;  she  should  be  doing 
more  for  Christ,  here  are  new  workers ;  she  should  be  her- 


ADDITIONS  TO  THE  CIIUKCII. 


67 


self  stronger,  more  daring,  more  useful,  for  here  are  bold 
soldiers  newly  enlisted.  I  think,  as  I  see  new  converts 
brought  in,  I  see  the  Lord  lighting  up  new  stars  to  gladden 
this  world's  night ;  I  see  him  swearing  in  new  soldiers  to 
Qght  Christ's  battles  ;  I  see  him  sending  out  new  sowers  to 
sow  the  plains  of  the  world  for  the  ever-glorious  harvest, 
m&  I  bless  and  praise  and  magnify  his  name  with  gladness 
vf  soul.  Heavenly  Father,  keep  them,  yea,  keep  us  all,  lest 
my  of  us,  though  added  to  the  church  on  earth,  should  not 
be  added  to  the  church  in  heaven.  Keep  us  so  that  when 
the  muster-roll  is  read  for  the  last  time,  we  who  have  had 
mi  names  inscribed  among  the  saints  on  earth  may  find 
fchcm  written  among  the  blessed  in  heaven.  May  God  grant 
it,  and  he  shall  have  all  the  glory.  Amen. 


SERMON  IV. 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 

Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 
ington. 

"  Herein  thou  hast  done  foolishly  :  therefore  from  henceforth  thou  shalt 
have  wars." — 2  Chronicles  xvi.  9. 

Our  text  leads  us  to  speak  upon  historical  matters,  and 
for  this  I  shall  by  no  means  apologize,  although  I  have  some- 
times heard  very  foolish  professors  speak  slightingly  of  the 
historical  part  of  Scripture.  Remember  that  the  historical 
books  were  almost  the  only  Scripture  possessed  by  the  early 
saints ;  and  from  those  they  learned  the  mind  of  God. 
David  sang  the  blessedness  of  the  man  who  delighted  in  the 
law  of  the  Lord,  yet  he  had  only  the  first  five  books,  and, 
perhaps,  Joshua,  Judges,  and  Ruth,  all  books  of  history,  in 
which  to  meditate  day  and  night.  The  psalmist  himself 
spoke  most  lovingly  of  these  books,  which  were  the  only 
statutes  and  testimonies  of  the  Lord  to  him,  with,  perhaps, 
the  addition  of  the  Book  of  Job.  Other  saints  delighted  in 
the  histories  of  the  word  before  the  more  spiritual  books 
came  in  their  way  at  all.  If  rightly  viewed,  the  histories  of 
the  Old  Testament  are  full  of  instruction.  They  supply  us 
both  with  warnings  and  examples  in  the  realm  of  practical 
morals  ;  and  hidden  within  their  letter,  like  pearls  in  oyster 
shells,  lie  grand  spiritual  truths  couched  in  allegory  and 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 


69 


metaphor.  I  may  say  of  the  least  important  of  all  the  books 
what  oar  Lord  said  of  children,  "  Take  heed  that  ye  despise 
not  one  of  these  little  ones."  To  take  away  from  Holy  Writ 
involves  a  curse  upon  the  daring  deed  ;  may  we  never  incur 
the  penalty  !  All  Scripture  is  given  by  inspiration,  and  is 
profitable  ;  be  it  ours  to  gain  the  profit.  Let  us  see  whether 
we  cannot  get  a  lesson  from  the  life  of  King  Asa. 

We  commence  by  noticing  ivho  he  was,  and  what  he  had 
done  in  his  letter  days,  for  this  will  help  to  understand  more 
clearly  the  fault  into  which  he  fell.  He  was  a  man  of  whom 
it  is  said  that  his  heart  was  perfect  before  God  all  his  days, 
jit  is  a  great  thing  to  have  said  of  any  one  ;  indeed,  it  is  the 
igreatest  commendation  which  can  be  pronounced  upon  mor- 
Ital  man.  When  the  heart,  the  intention,  the  master-affec- 
ftion  is  right,  the  man  is  reckoned  a  good  man  before  the 
Si  Lord,  notwithstanding  that  there  may  be  a  thousand  things 
Nrhich  are  not  commendable — yea,  and  some  things  which 
tare  censurable  in  the  man's  outward  career.  Asa  is  noticea- 
Ijble  in  the  early  part  of  his  life  for  the  fact  that  he  set  up  the 
worship  of  God,  and  carried  it  out  with  great  diligence, 
I  though  his  mother  was  an  idolator,  and  his  father,  Abijah, 
I  was  little  better.  He  had  enjoyed  no  training  as  a  youth 
that  could  lead  him  aright,  but  quite  the  contrary  ;  yet  he 
(iwas  very  decided,  even  in  the  first  days  of  his  reign,  for 
i the  Lord  his  God,  and  acted  in  all  things  with  an  earnest 
lidesire  to  glorify  Jehovah,  and  to  lead  his  people  away  from 
I  all  idols  to  the  worship  of  the  true  God.  Now,  a  life  may 
[  begin  well,  and  yet  be  clouded  ere  its  close ;  the  verdure 
I  of  earnestness  may  fade  into  the  sere  and  yellow  leaf  of 
!  backsliding.  We  may  have  the  grace  of  God  in  our  earliest 
•  days,  but  unless  we  have  day  by  day  fresh  help  from  on  high, 
tdead  flies  may  pollute  the  ointment  and  spoil  the  sweet  odor 
of  our  lives.  We  sMall  need  to  watch  against  temptation 
-  so  long  as  we  are  in  this  wilderness  of  sin.  Only  in  heaven 
[  are  we  out  of  gunshot  of  the  devil.    Though  we  may  have 


70  A  LESSON  FROM  THF  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 


been  kept  in  the  ways  of  the  Lord,  as  Asa  was,  for  fifty, 
or  sixty  years,  yet  if  left  by  the  Master  for  a  single  moment 
we  shall  bring  discredit  upon  his  holy  name. 

In  the  middle  of  his  reign  Asa  was  pnt  to  the  test  by  j 
a  very  serious  trial.  He  was  attacked  by  the  Ethiopians, 
and  they  came  against  him  in  mighty  swarms.  What  a  host 
to  be  arrayed  against  poor  little  Judah-^an  army  of  a  million 
footmen  and  three  hundred  thousand  chariots  !  All  the  host 
that  Asa  could  muster — and  he  did  his  best — was  but  small 
compared  to  the  mighty  baud  ;  and  it  appeared  as  if  the 
whole  land  would  be  eaten  up,  for  the  people  seemed  suffi- 
cient to  carry  away  Judea  by  handfuls.  But  Asa  believed  in 
God,  and  therefore  when  he  had  mustered  his  little  band  he 
committed  the  battle  to  the  Lord  his  God.  Eead  attentively 
that  earnest  believing  prayer  which  he  offered.  "  And  Asa 
cried  unto  the  Lord  his  God,  and  said,  Lord,  it  is  nothing 
with  thee  to  help,  whether  with  many,  or  with  them  that 
have  no  power ;  help  us,  0  Lord  our  God  :  for  we  rest  on 
thee,  and  in  thy  name  we  go  against  this  multitude.  0  1 
Lord,  thou  art  our  God  ;  let  not  man  prevail  against  thee." 
How  grandly  he  threw  all  his  burden  upon  God  !  He  de- 
clared that  he  rested  in  the  Most  High,  and  believed  that ! 
God  could  as .  well  achieve  the  victory  by  a  few  and  feeble 
folk  as  by  a  vast  army  ;  after  this  prayer  he  marched  to  the 
battle  witli  holy  confidence,  and  God  gave  him  the  victory. 
The  power  of  Ethiopia  was  broken  before  him,  and  Judah's 
armies  returned  laden  with  the  spoil.  You  would  not  have 
thought  that  a  man  who  could  perform  that  grand  action 
would  become,  a  little  after,  full  of  unbelief ;  but  the  great- 
est faith  of  yesterday  will  not  give  us  confidence  for  to-day, 
unless  the  fresh  springs  which  are  in  God  shall  overflow 
again.  Even  Abraham,  who  at  one  time  staggered  not  at 
the  promise  through  unbelief,  yet  did  stagger  sometime  i 
afterwards  about  a  far  less  difficult  matter.  The  greatest 
of  God's  servants,  if  their  Lord  hides  his  face,  soon  sink* 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 


71 


even  below  the  least ;  all  the  strength  of  the  strongest  lies 
in  him. 

After  Asa  had  thus  by  divine  strength  won  a  great 
victory,  he  did  not,  as  some  do,  grow  proud  of  it,  but  he  set 
to  work,  in  obedience  to  a  prophetic  warning,  to  purge 
his  country  by  a  thorough  reformation  ;  he  did  it 'and  did 
it  well.  He  did  not  show  any  partiality  towards  the  rich 
and  great  in  his  country  who  were  guilty  of  the  worship 
of  false  gods,  for  the  queen-mother  was  a  great  fosterer  of 
idolatry,  and  she  had  a  grove  of  her  own  with  a  temple  in 
it,  in  which  was  her  own  peculiar  idol ;  but  the  king  put  her 
away  from  her  eminent  position,  and  took  her  idol,  and  not 
merely  broke  it,  but  stamped  upon  it  and  burned  it,  with 
every  sign  of  contempt,  at  the  brook  Kidron,  into  which  ran 
the  sewage  of  the  temple,  to  let  the  people  know  that,  whether 
in  high  places  or  among  the  poor,  there  should  be  nothing  left 
to  provoke  the  Lord  throughout  the  land.  This  was  well  done. 
Oh  that  such  a  reformation  might  happen  in  this  land,  for  the 
country  is  beginning  to  be  covered  with  idols  and  mass-houses  ! 
Everywhere  they  are  setting  up  the  altars  of  their  breaden 
deity,  shrines  to  the  queen  of  heaven,  the  crucifix  and  the 
j saints,  while  the  spiritual  worship  of  God  is  put  aside  to 
make  room  for  vain  shows  and  spiritual  masquerades.  The 
God  of  the  Reformation — how  much  is  he  forgotten  now-a- 
days  !  Oh  for  a  return  of  the  days  of  Knox,  and  his  cove- 
i  nan  ting  brethren  !  Asa  was  for  a  root  and  branch  reform, 
land  he  went  through  with  it  bravely.  You  would  not  have 
i thought  that  a  man  so  thorough — a  man  who,  like  Levi  of 
jold,  knew  not  his  own  mother  when  it  came  to  the  matter  of 
serving  God,  but  made  "through  stitch"  with  it,  as  the  old 
writers  used  to  say — you  would  not  have  supposed  that  he 
(would  be  the  man  who,  when  he  came  into.another  trial,  would 
Jbe  running  after  an  idolator  and  cringing  before  him  and 
praying  him  to  give  him  his  help.  Alas,  the  best  of  men  are 
Imen  at  the  lest  I    God  alone  is  unchangeable.    He  alone  is 


72 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 


good  always,  or  indeed  at  all.    "  There  is  none  good  save  r( 

one,  that  is  God."    We  are  only  good  as  he  makes  us  good  ;  tl 

and  if  his  hand  be  withdrawn  even  for  a  moment,  we  start  ai 

aside  like  a  deceitful  bow,  or  a  broken  bone  which  has  been  T 

badly  set.    Alas,  how  soon  are  the  mighty  fallen,  and  the  ai 

weapons  of  war  broken,  if  the  Lord  uphold  not  !    Asa  who  tl 

could  do  marvels,  and  who  walked  so  well  and  thoroughly  J, 

before  his  God,  yet  nevertheless  came  to  do  foolishly  and  A 

bring  upon  himself  lifelong  chastisement.  n 

I  have  thus  brought  before  you  his  character,  because  \  I 

it  was  most  fitting  to  start  with  this  ;.  it  was  due  to  his  p 

memory,  and  due  to  ourselves ;  for  we  must  remember  j, 

that,  whatever  we  shall  have  to  say  against  him,  he  was  tl 

assuredly  a  child  of  God.    His  heart  was  right ;  hewasa  j  jn 

sincere,  genuine,  gracious  believer.    If  any  object  that  he  C( 

had  grievous  faults,  and  therefore  could  not  be  a  child  of  % 

God,  I  shall  be  obliged  to  answer  that  they  must  first  of  as 

all  produce  a  faultless  child  of  God  this  side  heaven  before  ]1£ 

they  will  have  sufficient  ground  for  such  an  objection.    I  i 

find  that  the  holiest  of  men  in  Scripture  had  their  imperfec-  fr 

tions,  with  the  sole  exception  of  our  Master,  the  Apostle  and  fr 

High  Priest  of  our  profession,  in  whom  was  no  sin.    His  \\ 

garments  were  whiter  than  any  fuller  could  make  them,  but  ^ 

all  his  servants  had  their  spots.    He  is  light,  and  in  him  fri 

is  no  darkness  at  all,  but  we,  with  all  the  brightness  his  re 

grace  has  given  us,  are  poor  dim  lamps  at  best.    I  make  ft 

no  exception  even  of  those  who  claim  perfection,  for  I  have  jE 

no  more  faith  in  their  perfection  than  in  the  Pope's  infalli-  ^ 

bility.    There  is  enough  of  the  earthen  vessel  left  about  the  |{ 

best  of  the  Lord's  servants  to  show  that  they  are  earthen,  So 

and  that  the  excellency  of  the  heavenly  treasure  of  divine  Vl 

grace  which  is  put  within  them  may  be  clearly  seen  to  be  of  a 

God  and  not  of  them.  ff; 

Now,  we  shall  turn  to  notice  the  grave  error  into  D2 

which  Asa  fell — the  foolishness  for  which  the  prophet  ^ 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA.  73 

rebuked  him.  He  was  threatened  by  Baasha,  the  king  of 
the  neighboring  territory  of  Israel ;  he  was  not  directly 
assailed  by  war,  but  Baasha  began  to  build  a  fortress  which 
would  command  the  passages  between  the  two  countries, 
and  prevent  the  people  of  Israel  from  coming  to  settle  in 
the  land  of  Jndah,  or  make  their  annual  pilgrimages  to 
Jerusalem.  Now,  one  would  naturally  have  expected,  from 
Asa's  former  conduct,  that  he  would  either  have  thought 
very  little  of  Baasha,  or  else  that  he  would  have  taken  the 
case  before  God,  as  he  did  before  in  the  matter  of  the  Ethio- 
pians. But  this  was  a  smaller  trouble  altogether,  and  some- 
how, I  fancy,  it  was  because  it  was  a  smaller  trouble  Asa 
thought  that  he  could  manage  it  very  well  himself  by  the 
help  of  an  arm  of  flesh.  In  the  case  of  the  invasion  by 
countless  hordes  of  Ethiopians,  Asa  must  have  felt  that  it 
was  of  no  use  calling  in  Ben-hadad,  the  king  of  Syria,  or 
asking  any  of  the  nations  to  help  him,  for  with  all  their  help 
he  would  not  have  been  equal  to  the  tremendous  struggle. 
Therefore  he  was  driven  to  God.  But  this  being  a  smaller 
itrial,  he  does  not  seem  to  have  been  so  thoroughly  divorced 
irom  confidence  in  man  ;  but  he  looked  about  him,  and 
^thought  that  Ben-hadad,  the  heathen  king  of  Syria,  might 
he  led  to  attack  the  king  of  Israel,  and  so  draw  him  away 
from  building  the  new  fort,  divide  his  attention,  cripple  his 
resources,  and  give  Judah  a  fine  opportunity  of  attacking 
him.  Believers  frequently  behave  worse  in  little  trials  than 
in  great  ones.  I  have  known  some  children  of  God  who  have 
fborne  with  equanimity  the  loss  of  almost  everything  the}' 
had,  who  have  been  disturbed  and  distracted  and  led  into  all 
£orts  of  doubt  and  mistrust  by  troubles  that  were  scarcely 
worth  the  mentioning.  How  is  it  that  vessels  which  bear 
a  hurricane  may,  nevertheless,  be  driven  upon  a  sandbank 
when  there  is  but  a  capful  of  wind — that  ships  which  have 
navigated  the  broad  ocean  have  yet  foundered  in  a  narrow 
stream  ?  It  only  proves  this,  that  it  is  not  the  severity  of 
4 


74  A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 

the  trial,  it  is  the  having  or  not  having  of  God's  presence 
that  is  the  main  thing  ;  for  in  the  great  trial  with  the 
Ethiopians  God's  grace  gave  Asa  faith,  but  in  the  little  trial 
about  Baasha,  king  of  Israel,  Asa  had  no  faith,  and  began 
to  look  about  him  for  help  from  men. 

Observe  that  Asa  went  off  to  Ben-hadad,  the  king  of 
Syria,  who  was  a  worshipper  of  a  false  god,  with  whom  he 
ought  to  have  had  no  connection  or  alliance  whatever  ;  and, 
what  was  worse,  he  induced  Ben-hadad  to  break  his  league 
with  Baasha.  Here  was  a  child  of  God  teaching  the  ungodly 
to  be  untrue — a  man  of  God  becoming  an  instructor  of  Satan, 
teaching  a  heathen  to  be  false  to  his  promise.  This  was 
policy.  This  is  the  kind  of  thing  which  the  kings  of  the 
earth  practice  towards  one  another  ;  they  are  always  ready 
to  break  treaties,  though  bound  by  the  most  solemn  pledges. 
They  make  but  light  of  covenants.  The  great  matter  with 
ambassadors  even  now-a-days  is  to  see  which  can  entangle 
the  other,  for,  as  a  statesman  once  said,  "  An  ambassador 
is  a  person  who  is  sent  abroad  to  lie  for  the  good  of  his  coun- 
try." Oh,  the  tricks,  plots,  deceptions,  equivocations,  and 
intrigues  of  diplomacy !  No  chapter  in  human  history 
shows  up  our  fallen  nature  in  more  mournful  colors.  Asa, 
I  have  no  doubt,  thought  that  all  was  fair  in  war.  He  took 
the  common  rule,  the  common  standard  of  mankind,  and 
went  upon  that ;  whereas,  as  a  child  of  God,  he  ought  to 
have  scorned  anything  that  was  dishonorable  or  untrue  ;  and 
as  to  saying  to  a  heathen  king,  "  Break  thy  league  with 
Baasha,  and  make  a  league  with  me  " — why,  if  he  had  been 
in  a  right  state  of  heart,  he  would  sooner  have  lost  his 
tongue  than  have  uttered  such  disgraceful  words.  But  child 
of  God  as  he  was,  when  he  once  got  off  the  plain  simple  way 
of  believing  in  God,  and  taking  his  trouble  to  God,  there 
was  no  telling  what  he  would  do.  When  you  set  the  helm 
of  your  vessel  towards  the  point  to  which  you  mean  to  steer, 
and  steer  right  on,  whatever  comes  in  your  way,  then  your 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA.  75 

course,  will  be  well  enough  if  you  have  a  motive  power  within 
independent  of  wind  and  tide ;  but  when  you  take  to  tack- 
ing this  way,  then  you  will  have  in  due  time  to  tack  the 
other  way ;  and  when  policy  makes  you  do  this  wrong 
thing,  policy  will  lead  you  to  do  another  wrong  thing,  and 
so  on,  to  a  most  lamentable  degree.  When  our  walk  is  with 
the  Lord,  it  is  a  safe,  holy,  honorable  walk,  but  the  way  of 
the  flesh  is  evil,  and  ends  in  shame.  If  you  follow  the  way 
of  the  world,  though  always  a  crowded  way,  it  will  turn 
out  before  long  to  be  a  miserable,  pettifogging,  cringing, 
humiliating,  wretched  way,  dishonorable  to  the  true-born 
heir  of  heaven.  Dust  shall  be  the  serpent's  meat,  and  if  we 
practice  the  crawling,  twisting,  slimy  arts  of  the  serpent, 
we  shall  have  to  eat  the  dust  too.  Should  a  child  of  God 
degrade  himself  in  that  fashion  ?  If  he  acts  as  he  should 
act,  he  acts  like  a  nobleman,  nay,  like  a  prince  of  the  blood 
imperial  of  heaven,  for  is  he  not  a  son  of  God,  one  of  heaven's 
true  aristocracy  ?  But  when  he  degenerates  to  acting  as 
worldlings  *do,  then,  alas  !  he  stains  his  garments  in  the 
mire.  I  charge  you,  my  dear  brethren  and  sisters,  to  look 
well  to  this.  Perhaps  I  may  be  speaking  as  God's  mouth  to 
some  of  you  who  are  now  entering  upon  a  testing  time,  a 
trouble  in  the  family,  a  trial  in  business,  or  a  difficulty  in 
reference  to  a  contemplated  marriage,  and  you  are  asking, 
"  What  course  shall  I  take  ?  "  You  know  what  a  man  of 
the  world  would  do,  and  it  has  been  suggested  to  you  that 
such  a  course  is  the  right  one  for  you  to  follow.  My  dear 
brother,  remember  you  are  not  of  the  world,  even  as  Christ 
is  not  of  the  world  ;  mind  you  act  accordingly.  If  you  are  a 
worldly  man,  and  do  as  worldly  men  do,  why  I  must  leave 
you,  for  them  that  are  without  God  judgeth  ;  but  if  you  are 
a  man  of  God,  and  an  heir  of  heaven,  I  beseech  you,  do  not 
follow  custom,  or  do  a  wrong  thing  because  others  would 
do  it,  or  do  a  little  evil  for  the  sake  of  a  great  good,  but 
in  your  confidence  possess  your  soul,  and  abide  faithful  to 


76 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 


conscience  and  to  the  eternal  law  of  rectitude.  Let  others 
do  as  they  please,  but  as  for  you,  set  the  Lord  always  before 
you,  and  let  integrity  and  uprightness  preserve  you.  Ask 
the  Lord  to  help  you.  Is  it  not  written  that  he  will  with 
the  temptation  make  a  way  of  escape  ?  "  Cast  thy  burden 
upon  the  Lord  ;  he  will  sustain  thee.  He  will  never  suffer 
the  righteous  to  be  moved."  Do  not  put  forth  your  hand  to 
iniquity.  You  may,  in  order  to  help  yourself,  do  in  five 
minutes  what  you  cannot  undo  in  fifty  years  ;  and  you  may 
bring  upon  yourself  a  lifelong  series  of  trial  by  one  single 
unbelieving  action.  Beware  of  staying  yourself  on  Egypt 
and  sending  for  help  to  Assyria,  for  these  will  distress  you, 
but  help  you  not.  Cry,  "  Lord,  increase  our  faith  !"  That 
is  what  you  greatly  need  in  the  trying  hour,  lest  you  should, 
like  Asa,  first  of  all  turn  from  confidence  in  God,  and  then, 
looking  to  an  arm  of  flesh,  should  be  tempted  to  use  illegiti- 
mate means  in  order  to  induce  the  creature  to  let  you  rely 
upon  it. 

Asa,  having  advanced  so  far  in  the  wrong  path,  did  worse 
still,  if  worse  could  be  ;  for  he  took  of  the  gold  and  silver 
which  belonged  to  the  house  of  the  Lord,  in  order  to  pur- 
chase therewith  the  alliance  of  the  Syrian  monarch.  I  will 
say  nothing  about  what  belonged  to  his  own  house.  He 
might  do  as  he  liked  with  that  so  long  as  he  did  not  spend  it 
upon  sin,  but  he  took  of  the  treasure  that  belonged  to  the 
house  of  the  Lord,  and  gave  it  to  Ben-hadad  to  bribe  him  to 
break  his  league  with  Baasha,  and  be  in  league  with  himself. 
Thus  God  was  robbed  that  the  unbelieving  king  might  find 
help  in  an  arm  of  flesh.  And,  "Will  a  man  rob  God?" 
Yet  a  Christian  never  doubts  God,  and  looks  to  the  creature, 
without  robbing  him.  If  you  rob  him  of  nothing  else,  you 
rob  him  of  his  honor.  Shall  a  father  find  his  child  trusting 
a  stranger  rather  than  his  own  sire  ?  Shall  the  husband  see 
his  wife  putting  confidence  in  his  enemy  ?  Will  not  that  rob 
him  of  that  which  is  far  more  precious  than  gold  ?    Is  it  not 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA.  77 

a  breach  of  that  undivided  affection,  and  that  complete  confi- 
dence, which  ought  to  exist  in  the  conjugal  relatiouship  \ 
And  shall  I  mistrust  my  heavenly  Father,  my  almighty 
helper,  and  put  confidence  in  a  poor,  broken  reed  ?  Shall  I 
cast  my  burden  upon  a  poor  fellow-sinner,  and  forget  to  rest 
in  my  Saviour  ?  Shall  the  Well-beloved  of  my  soul  be  only 
trusted  in  fair  weather  ?  and  shall  I  have  such  a  sorry  opin- 
ion of  him  that,  when  it  comes  to  a  little  storm,  I  run  to 
some  one  else  and  ask  him  to  be  my  refuge  ?  Beloved,  let  it 
not  be  so  with  us,  or  we  shall  surely  grieve  the  Lord  and 
bring  ourselves  into  much  perplexity.  Have  we  not  been 
guilty  enough  of  this  already  ?  Shall  we  provoke  the  Lord 
to  jealousy  ?  Are  we  bent  upon  grieving  his  Holy  Spirit  ? 
Can  we  not  take  warning  from  Asa  ?  Need  we  run  upon 
this  rock  when  we  can  see  the  wrecks  of  others  all  around  ? 
The  Lord  grant  that  we  may  take  heed,  according  to  his  word  ! 

So  this  good  man,  by  his  want  of  faith,  fell  into  many  sins  ; 
for  I  am  compelled  to  add  that  he  had  to  bear  the  blame  of 
the  consequences  of  his  conduct,  for  when  Ben-hadad,  the 
king  of  Syria,  came  up  and  attacked  Israel,  he  did  not  con- 
tent himself  with  a  battle  or  two,  but  he  fell  to  plundering 
the  Israelites  and  murdering  them  by  wholesale,  so  that 
great  sorrows  were  brought  upon  the  people  of  Israel.  And 
who  was  to  blame  for  these  sorrows  but  the  king  of  Judah 
who  had  hired  the  Syrians  for  that  very  purpose  ?  He  who 
ought  to  have  been  a  brother  to  the  Israelites  became  their 
destroyer,  and  every  time  the  cruel  sword  of  the  Syrians  slew 
the  women  and  children  of  Israel,  the  poor  afflicted  people 
had  Asa  to  thank  for  it.  The  beginning  of  sin  is  like  the 
letting  out  of  waters  ;  none  can  foresee  what  devastation  the 
floods  may  cause.  Brethren,  we  can  never  tell  what  may  be  the 
consequences  of  one  wrong  action  ;  we  may  kindle  a  fire  in  the 
forest,  merely  to  warm  our  own  hands,  but  where  the  sparks 
may  fly,  and  how  many  leagues  the  conflagration  may  spread, 
an  angel  cannot  prophesy.    Let  us  jealously  keep  away  from 


78  A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 

every  doubtful  deed,  lest  we  bring  evil  consequences  upon 
pthers  as  well  as  ourselves.  If  we  carry  no  matches,  we 
shall  cause  no  explosions.  Oh,  for  a  holy  jealousy,  a  deep 
conscientiousness,  and,  above  all,  a  solemn  conscientiousness 
on  the  point  of  faith  !  To  rest  in  the  Lord — that  is  our 
business  ;  to  stay  ourselves  only  upon  him — that  is  our  sole 
concern.  "My  soul,  wait  thou  only  upon  God,  for  my 
expectation  is  from  him."  Unbelief  is  in  itself  idolatry; 
unbelief  leads  us  to  look  to  the  creature,  which  is  folly  ;  and 
to  look  to  the  creature  is,  in  effect  to  worship  the  creature, 
to  put  it  into  God's  place,  and  so  to  grieve  God,  and  set  up  a 
rival  in  the  holy  place. 

I  want  you  to  listen  yet  a  little  while  longer  to  this  story 
of  Asa.  It  came  to  pass  that  Asa's  hiring  Ben-hadad  turned 
out  to  be  a  fine  thing  for  him,  and,  in  the  judgment  of  every- 
body who  looked  on,  I  dare  say  that  it  was  said  that  it  was 
a  fortunate  stroke  of  business.  According  to  God's  mind, 
the  king's  course  was  evil,  but  it  did  not  turn  out  badly  for 
him  politically.  Now,  many  people  in  the  world  judge  ac- 
tions by  their  immediate  results.  If  a  Christian  does  a  wrong 
thing,  and  it  prospers,  then  at  once  they  conclude  he  was 
justified  in  doing  it ;  but,  ah  !  brethren,  this  is  a  poor  blind 
way  of  judging  the  actions  of  men  and  the  providence  of  God. 
Do  you  not  know  that  there  are  devil's  providences  as  well 
as  God's  providences  f  I  mean  this.  Jonah  wanted  to  go  to 
Tarshish  to  flee  from  God,  and  he  went  down  to  Joppa  ;  and 
what  ?  Why,  he  found  a  ship  going  to  Tarshish.  What  a 
providence  !  What  a  providence  !  Are  you  so  foolish  as  to 
view  it  in  that  light  ?  I  do  not  think  Jonah  was  of  that 
mind  when  he  cried  unto  God  out  of  the  deeps.  When  the 
chief  priests  and  Pharisees  would  take  Jesus,  they  found 
Judas  ready  to  betray  him.  Was  this  also  a  providence  ? 
May  not  Satan  have  some  hand  in  the  arrangement  which 
lays  a  weapon  so  near  a  murderer's  hand,  or  renders  robbery 
and  fraud  so  easy  ?   Do  you  think  it  an  instance  of  divine 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 


79 


goodness  that  the  tares  often  .  grow  plentifully  when  the 
wheat  suffers  from  drought.  Often  have  we  observed  peo- 
ple who  wanted  to  do  wrong,  and  things  have  just  happened 
rightly  to  help  them  ;  and  they  have  all  said,  "  What  a  prov- 
idence !  "  Ah,  but  a  providence  that  was  meant  to  test  and 
try,  not  a  providence  that  was  intended  to  aid  and  alefc  in 
the  doing  of  a  wrong  thing  ;  a  providence  not  to  rejoice  in, 
but  concerning  which  we  are  taught  to  pray,  "  Lead  us  not 
into  temptation,  but  deliver  us  from  evil. "  A  wrong  is  a 
wrong,  whatever  comes  of  it.  If  by  uttering  one  falsehood 
you  could  become  a  rich  man  forever,  it  would  not  change 
the  nature  of  the  falsehood.  If  by  doing  one  wrong  trans- 
action you  could  rid  yourself  from  all  liabilities  in  business, 
and  be  henceforth  in  competent  circumstances,  that  would 
not,  before  God,  take  off  the  edge  of  the  evil,  nay,  not  a 
single  jot.  God  was  pleased,  for  wise  reasons,  to  allow  the 
policy  of  his  erring  servant  Asa  to  prosper,  but  now  you  will 
see  that  Asa  was  put  in  a  worse  place  than  ever  because  of  it. 

The  trial  of  Asa's  spirit,  the  testing  of  his  unswerving 
faithfulness,  whether  he  would  walk  before  God  or  not,  be- 
came more  severe  than  before,  for  God  sent  his  servant  the 
prophet  to  him,  and  he  said  to  him,  "  When  you  came  to 
God  and  trusted  about  the  Ethiopians,  did  not  God  prosper 
you  ?  Though  there  were  so  many  of  them,  did  not  the 
Lord  give  you  the  victory  ?  And  now  you  have  gone  away 
from  your  faith,  you  have  lost  a  good  blessing  by  it ;  for  if 
you  had  trusted  in  God,  you  would  have  gone  to  war  against 
Baasha  and  Ben-hadad,  and  you  would  have  beaten  them 
both,  and  your  own  kingdom  would  have  grown  strong  by 
the  putting  down  of  these  rival  kingdoms.  But  you  have 
lost  that ;  you  have  acted  very  foolishly,  and  God  means 
to  chasten  you  for  it,  for  from  this  very  day  you  will  have 
no  peace,  but  you  will  have  war  so  long  as  you  are  a  king." 
Now,  observe,  if  King  Asa  had  met  with  a  trouble  when  he 
acted  unjustifiably,  he  would  have  been  humble,  I  have  no 


80  A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 

doubt.  Then  lie  would  have  seen  how  wrong  he  was,  and 
he  would  have  repented  ;  but  inasmuch  as  what  he  had  done 
did  not  bring  disaster  with  it,  and  God  did  not  chasten  him, 
the  king's  heart  grew  proud,  and  he  said,  "  Who  is  this  fel- 
low that  he  should  come  to  tell  his  king  his  duty  ?  Does  he 
think  I  do  not  know,  as  well  as  he  can  tell  me,  what  is  right 
and  what  is  wrong  ?  Put  the  arrogant  intruder  in  prison  ?  i 
When  a  prophet  came  to  Kehoboam,  who  was  a  bad  king, 
Eehoboam  did  not  put  him  in  prison  ;  he  respected  and 
reverenced  the  word  of  the  Lord.  A  bad  man  may  do  bet- 
ter than  a  good  man  on  some  one  particular  occasion  ;  and! 
so  Eehoboam  did  better  in  that  matter  than  Asa  did.  But 
Asa  was  now  all  wrong,  lie  was  in  a  high  hectoring  spirit ; 
and  this  was  but  what  we  might  have  expected,  for  whenever 
a  man  will  cringe  before  his  fellow-men,  you  may  be  sure  he 
is  beginning  to  walk  proudly  before  his  God.  In  his  haughti- 
ness of  heart  he  put  the  prophet  in  prison.  Instead  of  weep- 
ing and  humbling  himself  for  what  he  had  done,  he  impris- 
oned his  reprover ;  and  then,  being  in  an  irritable  temper 
and  a  domineering  humor,  he  began  to  oppress  certain  of  his 
people.  I  do  not  know  who  they  may  have  been,  but  proba- 
bly they  were  godly  persons  who  sympathized  with  the  prophet, 
and  said,  "  We  shall  surely  meet  with  a  terrible  judgment  for 
dealing  thus  with  God's  servant."  Perhaps  they  spoke  freely 
about  it ;  and  so  he  put  them  in  prison  too.  Thus  God's  own 
child  had  become  the  persecutor  of  God's  servant,  and  ofi 
other  faithful  ones.  Oh,  it  is  very  sad,  very  sad  !  Well! 
might  God  then  resolve  that  the  angry  king  should  smart  for 
his  faults  very  severely,  that  the  rod  should  come  home  to 
his  bone  and  his  flesh,  and  render  his  remaining  days  exceed- 
ingly sorrowful.  0  beloved  friends,  among  your  most  earn- 
est prayers  pray  God  never  to  let  your  sins  prosper ;  for 
if  they  do,  they  will  breed  a  gangrene  in  your  spirit,  which 
will  lead  on  to  far  more  dangerous  diseases  of  the  soul,  and 
will  inevitably  entail  upon  you  a  dreary  inheritance  of  amic- 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA.  81 

tion.  God  does  not  always  whip  his  children  the  next 
minute  after  they  do  wrong  ;  sometimes  he  tells  them  that 
the  rod  will  come,  and  so  makes  them  smart  in  apprehension 
before  they  smart  in  actual  experience,  for  they  are  thinking 
of  what  it  may  be,  and  that  may  be  even  a  worse  trial  to 
tli em  than  the  trial  itself.  But  as  surely  as  they  are  his  own 
peculiar  people,  they  must  and  shall  be  taught  that  sin  is  an 
exceedingly  great  evil,  and  they  shall  have  no  joy  of  their 
dalliance  with  it. 

Thus  I  have  shown  you  who  Asa  was3  and  what  faults 
he  fell  into,  and  how  this  led  to  other  faults  ;  and  now  we 
have  to  show  you  ivhat  God  did  with  him  tvhen  he  came  to  a 
close  reckoning.  "Now,"  he  seemed  to  say,  "I  will  take 
you  in  hand  myself,"  and  he  sent  him  a  disease  in  his  feet — 
a  very  painful  disease  too.  He  had  to  suffer  night  and  day  ; 
he  was  tormented  with  it,  and  found  no  rest.  God's  own 
hand  was  heavy  upon  him  ;  some  of  us  know  to  our  cost 
that  disease  in  the  feet  can  become  a  very  grievous  affliction, 
second  indeed  to  none,  unless  it  be  a  malady  of  the  brain. 
Now  did  the  king  learn  that  embroidered  slippers  give  no 
ease  to  gouty  feet,  and  that  sleep  flies  when  disease  bears 
rule.  This  should  have  driven  Asa  to  repentance,  but,  to 
show  that  afflictions  of  themselves  will  not  set  a  man  right, 
Asa  had  fallen  into  such  an  unbelieving  spirit  that,  instead 
of  sending  to  God  for  help,  and  crying  for  relief  to  him  who 
sent  the  disease,  he  sent  for  the  physicians.  It  is  not  wrong 
to  send  for  physicians,  it  is  quite  right ;  but  it  is  very  wrong 
to  send  for  physicians  in  place  of  crying  to  God,  thus  put- 
ting the  human  agency  before  the  divine  ;  besides,  it  is  very 
probable  that  these  physicians  were  only  heathenish  con- 
jurors, necromancers,  and  pretenders  to  magical  arts,  and 
could  not  be  consulted  without  implicating  the  patient  in 
their  evil  practices.  Though  Asa  would  not  approve  of 
their  heathenism,  yet  he  might  think,  "  Well,  they  are 
famous  for  their  cures,  and  who  they  may  be  is  not  so 
4* 


82 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 


much  my  concern  ;  I  will  put  up  with  that ;  if  they  can 
cure  me  they  may  come."  So  his  unbelief  deprived  him  I 
of  the  cure  which  God  could  readily  enough  have  given  him, 
and  he  had  his  physicians  and  their  physic,  but  they  were 
miserable  comforters  to  him,  giving  him  no  relief,  and  proba- 
bly causing  him  to  suffer  more  than  he  would  have  suffered 
without  them.  They  were  physicians  of  no  value,  and  their 
medicines  were  a  delusion.  How  often  is  it  so  when  we 
persist  in  looking  away  from  God.  He  who  has  God  has 
all,  but  he  who  has  all  besides  God  has  really  nothing  at  all. 

Asa's  life  after  that  period  was  a  life  of  war  and  pain. 
His  evening  was  clouded,  and  his  sun  set  in  tempest.  Have 
you  never  noticed  the  career  of  David  ?   What  a  happy  life 
David's  was  up  to  one  point !    In  his  youth  he  was  hunted 
like  a  partridge  upon  the  mountains,  but  he  was  very  merry. 
What  joyful  psalms  he  used  to  sing  when  he  was  a  humble  I 
shepherd-boy  !    And  when  afterwards  he  was  an  exile  in  the 
caves  of  Engedi,  how  gloriously  he  poured  out  notes  of  grati-  ( 
tude  and  joy  !    He  was  at  that  period,  and  for  years  after, 
one  of  the  happiest  of  men.    But  that  hour  when  he  walked 
on  the  roof  of  his  house,  and  saw  Bathsheba,  and  gave  way 
to  his  unholy  desires,  put  an  end  to  the  happy  days  of  David  ; 
and  though  he  was  a  child  of  God,  and  God  never  cast  him 
away,  yet  his  heavenly  Father  never  ceased  to  chasten  him. 
From  that  day  his  life  teems  with  trouble — troubles  from  j 
his  own  children  one  after  another,  ingratitude  from  his  sub-  j 
jects,  and  annoyance  from  his  enemies.    Afflictions  sprang 
up  for  him  as  plenteously  as  hemlock  in  the  furrows.  He 
became  a  weeping  monarch  instead  of  a  rejoicing  one.    The  I 
whole  tenor  of  his  life  is  changed  ;  a  sombre  shade  is  cast 
over  his  entire  image.    You  recognize  him  as  the  same  man, 
but  his  voice  is  broken  ;  his  music  is  deep  bass,  he  cannot 
reach  the  high  notes  of  the  scale.    From  the  hour  in  which 
he  sinned  he  began  to  sorrow  more  and  more.    So  will  it  be 
with  us  if  we  are  not  watchful,    We  may  have  led  very  - 


A  LESSON   FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA.  83 

happy  lives  in  Christ  up  to  this  moment,  and  we  know  the 
Lord  will  not  cast  us  away,  for  he  doth  not  cast  away  his 
people  whom  he  did  foreknow ;  but  if  we  begin  to  walk 
distrustfully,  and  adopt  wrong  actions,  and  dishonor  his 
name,  he  may  from  this  moment  say,  tf*'You  only  have  I 
known  of  all  the  people  of  the  earth,  therefore  I  will  punish 
you  for  your  iniquities.  Because  I  love  you  I  will  chasten 
you,  for  I  chasten  every  son  whom  I  love.  And  now,  because 
you  have  thus  gone  astray,  you  shall  be  filled  with  your  own 
backslidings.  Your  own  vanity  shall  become  your  vexation 
throughout  the  rest  of  your  days."  Asa  does  not  appear 
to  have  had  any  peace  until  at  last  he  fell  asleep,  and  then, 
I  trust,  his  dying  bed  was  as  sweetly  perfumed  with  peni- 
tence and  pardon  as  his  funeral  couch  was  odoriferous  with 
fragrant  spices.  The  sweet  spices  of  forgiving  love  and 
reviving  faith  were  there,  and  he  died  rejoicing  in  his  God, 
through  the  great  sacrifice ;  brought  back  after  a  time  of 
wandering,  the  cloudy  day  at  last  ending  in  a  calm,  bright 
evening.  But  who  wishes  to  go  so  far  astray,  eten  if  he  be 
at  length  restored  ?  0  brethren,  we  do  not  merely  want  to 
go  to  heaven,  but  we  desire  to  enjoy  a  heaven  on  the  road 
to  heaven.  We  would  like  not  only  to  come  up  from  the 
wilderness  but  to  come  up  from  the  wilderness  leaning 
on  our  Beloved.  We  would  not  wish  to  be  saved  "  so  as 
by  fire,"  but  to  have  an  abundant  entrance  administered  to 
us  into  the  kingdom  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ. 

Asa's  character  was  well  known  among  the  people,  and 
they  loved  and  respected  him.  The  mistake  he  had  made 
grieved  many  of  the  godly,  I  do  not  doubt ;  but  for  all  that, 
they  felt  that  one  fault  must  not  blot  out  the  recollection 
of  nearly  forty  years  of  devoted  service  to  God  ;  so  they 
loved  him  and  they  honored  him  with  a  funeral  worthy 
of  a  king;  a  funeral  by  which  they  expressed  both  their 
sorrow  and  their  esteem.  But  may  it  never  be  said  of  you 
and  of  me,  "  He  led  a  good  life  ;  he  was  eminent  in  the 


84 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 


service  of  God,  and  did  much  ;  but  there  was  an  unhappy 
day  in  which  the  weakness  of  the  flesh  mastered  the  inner 
life."  0  dear  sister,  if  you  have  brought  up  your  children 
and  have  seen  your  family  about  you,  and  they  have  been 
proofs  to  all  the  world  of  the  way  in  which  you  have  walked 
with  God,  and  of  your  care  to  discharge  your  duties,  do  not 
let  your  old  age  be  given  up  to  petulance  and  murmuring 
and  complaining,  so  that  your  friends  will  have  to  say  of  you, 
"  At  the  last  she  was  not  the  happy  Christian  woman  that  she 
used  to  be."  My  dear  brother,  you  have  been  a  merchant, 
and  you  have  resisted  a  good  many  temptations,  and  you 
have  been  noted  for  your  honorable  character,  do  not  now  in 
a  moment  of  extreme  trial  begin  to  doubt  your  God.  May 
the  Holy  Ghost  preserve  you  from  so  great  an  ill.  In  the 
time  of  your  need  you  will  find  the  Lord  to  be  Jehovah-jireh. 
He  is  no  fair  weather  friend,  but  he  is  a  shelter  from  the 
storm,  a  covert  from  the  tempest.  Stand  fast  in  your  faith 
in  him.  Do  not  question  your  God,  and  do  questionable 
things  in  consequence,  for,  if  you  do,  it  will  be  said  by  those 
who  come  after  you,  and  perhaps  even  while  you  live  by 
those  who  love  you,  "  He  was  a  good  man,  but  there  was  a 
sad  period  of  weakness  and  inconsistency,  and  though  he  was 
deeply  penitent,  yet  from  that  unhappy  day  he  went  limping 
to  his  tomb." 

What  a  precious  Christ  we  have,  who  saves  such  sinners 
as  we  are  at  all !  What  a  dear  and  blessed  Lord  we  have, 
who  does  not  cast  us  away,  notwithstanding  all  our  slips  and 
falls  and  shameful  wanderings.  Beloved,  let  us  not  be  so  base 
as  wantonly  to  grieve  him  : — 

"  We  have  no  fear  that  thou  shouldst  lose 
One  whom  eternal  love  could  choose  ; 
But  we  would  ne'er  this  grace  abuse 
Let  us  not  fall.    Let  us  not  fall.  m 

With  such  a  warning  as  this  of  Asa  before  us  now,  do  not  let 
us  relax  our  watchfulness  and  insensibly  turn  aside.    "  The ' 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA.  85 

path  of  the  just  is  as  the  shining  light,  which  shineth  more 
and  more  unto  the  perfect  day."  That  is  your  model ;  that 
is  the  promise  which  Scripture  sets  before  you.  Plead  it, 
and  try  to  realize  it.  Let  us  go  from  strength  to  strength. 
Let  us  ask  to  grow  in  grace  and  in  the  knowledge  of  our 
Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  If  we  have  wanted  props 
hitherto — outward  and  visible  props — and  have  not  been  able 
altogether  to  rely  upon  God,  may  the  Lord  help  us  to  grow 
stronger,  so  that  we  may  have  done  with  Ready-to  Halt's 
crutches.  May  we  walk  uprightly  before  the  Lord,  because 
we  rely  upon  him,  trusting  ever  in  his  sure  faithfulness,  and 
in  the  power  which  guarantees  that  his  promise  shall  be 
fulfilled. 

I  do  not  know  to  whom  I  may  be  speaking  a  needful 
word,  except  that  I  know  it  is  needful  for  myself.  Perad- 
venture  there  are  some  here  to  whom  it  may  be  just  the 
word  that  is  wanted.  Dear  brother,  the  life  of  faith  is  a 
blessed  one  ;  a  believer's  course  is  a  tried  one,  it  is  a  war- 
fare ;  but,  for  all  that,  all  the  sorrows  of  faith  put  together 
do  not  equal  in  bitterness  one  drop  of  the  sorrow  of  sin,  or 
one  grain  of  the  misery  of  unbelief.  The  king's'  highway 
may  be  rough,  but  By-path  Meadow  in  the  long  run  is  the 
rougher  way  of  the  two.  It  looks  very  pleasant  to  walk 
on  the  green  turf,  but,  remember,  it  is  only  in  appearance 
that  By-path  Meadow  is  smooth.  The  ways  of  Christ  are 
ways  of  pleasantness,  and  all  his  paths  are  peace,  as  com- 
pared with  any  other  paths  in  the  world  ;  and  if  they  were 
not — if  to  serve  the  Lord  led  us  only  into  sorrow  and  trouble — 
I  trust  the  loyal  hearts  here,  the  virgin  souls  whom  Christ  has 
chosen,  would  resolve  through  floods  or  flames,  if  Jesus  led 
the  way,  to  follow  still.  0  beloved,  may  ye  cleave  to  the  Lord 
by  a  simple  faith  !  May  ye  cleave  to  him  when  the  many 
turn  aside  !  May  ye  witness  that  he  has  the  living  Word, 
and  none  upon  earth  beside  !  Because  your  hearts  are  frail 
and  feeble,  ask  him  now  to  cast  the  bands  of  his  love 


86 


A  LESSON  FROM  THE  LIFE  OF  KING  ASA. 


about  yon,  and  the  cords  of  a  man,  to  bind  yon  fast  to  his 
altar,  that  you  may  not  go  away  from  it ;  for  except  he  hold 
you  fast,  ye  must,  ye  will  decline,  and  prove  apostates  after 
all.  But  he  will  hold  you  ;  he  will  keep  the  feet  of  his 
saints.  Only  trust  not  in  yourselves.  "  He  that  trusteth  in 
his  own  heart  is  a  fool."  If  any  man  say,  "I  stand,"  let 
him  take  heed  lest  he  fall.  Beware  of  that  self-confidence, 
and  spiritual  boasting,  which  is  becoming  common  among 
Christians,  aye,  and  among  some  of  the  better  sort,  who 
can  even  brag  of  their  attainments  ;  when,  if  they  did  but 
know  themselves,  they  would  confess  that  they  are  nothing 
better,  even  at  the  best,  than  poor,  naked,  miserable  sinners, 
and  have  need  to  look  to  Jesus,  for  they  are  nothing  but 
empty  boasters  apart  from  him,  since  only  in  Christ  are 
we  anything.  "  When  I  am  weak,  then  am  I  strong," 
but  at  no  other  time.  When  I  think  I  have  whereof  to] 
glory,  then  am  I  indeed  despicable  ;  I  know  not  myself,  and 
am  become  purblind,  so  as  only  to  see  what  my  own  pride 
makes  me  think  I  see.  May  the  Holy  Ghost  keep  us  hum- 
ble— keep  us  at  the  cross-foot — keep  us  flat  on  the  promise, 
resting  on  the  eternal  rock,  and  crying,  "  nothing  am  I, 
Lord — nothing  ;  but  thou  art  all  in  all.  I  am  all  emptiness  ; 
come  and  fill  me.  I  am  all  nakedness ;  come  and  clothe 
me.  I  am  all  weakness  ;  come  and  glorify  thy  power,  by 
making  use  of  me  ! " 

God  bless  you,  dear  friends,  and  if  there  be  any  among 
you  who  have  not  a  God  to  trust  in,  or  a  Saviour  to  love, 
may  you  seek  Jesus  now  !  If  you  seek  him  he  will  be  found 
of  you  ;  for  whosoever  belie veth  in  him  is  saved,  whosoever 
trusteth  in  Christ  is  saved.  Pardon  and  salvation  belong  to 
every  soul  that  hangs  its  hope  upon  the  'cross.  May  God 
bless  you  richly,  for  Christ's  sake.  Amen. 


SERMON  VI. 


QUESTIONS  OF  THE  DAY  AND  THE  QUESTION 
OF  THE  DAY. 

Delivered  on  Lord's-Day  Morning. 

"  What  think  ye  of  Christ  ?  " — Matthew  xxii.  42. 

It  was  a  custom  among  the  Jews  before  the  Paschal  lamb 
was  killed  to  shut  it  up  for  several  days  for  examination.  It 
was  at  first  selected  with  great  care,  for  it  must  be  "a  lamb 
without  blemish,  a  male  of  the  first  year"  ;  and  lest  at  the 
first  choice  some  blemish  should  have  been  overlooked  it  was 
continually  inspected  from  day  to  day.  It  was  meet  that  the 
lamb  of  God's  passover  should  pass  through  a  similar  ordeal. 
It  is  remarkable  that  our  Saviour,  during  the  days  which 
preceded  his  being  offered  up  for  us  on  Calvary  was  exam- 
ined and  questioned  both  by  friends  and  foes.  The  sharpest 
eyes  were  brought  to  bear  upon  him — eyes  made  preternat- 
urally  keen  through  the  malice  of  wicked  hearts.  He  passed 
under  the  scrutiny  of  Pharisees,  of  Herodians,  of  Sadducees, 
and  of  lawyers.  They  tested  him  in  all  parts,  and  tried  him 
from  all  points;  yet  they  found  no  fault  in  him.  "They 
marvelled  and  left  him,  and  went  their  way "  ;  but  like 
Pilate,  they  found  no  fault  in  him.  Read  the  chapter 
before  us  in  that  light,  and  it  becomes  singularly  interest- 
ing, as  exhibiting  the  unassailable  perfection  of  our  Divine 
Redeemer.  Let  us  pray  that  when  we  are  proved  and  tested 
we  may  also  endure  the  fiery  trial,  and  be  found  to  be  pure 
gold.    As  they  tried  our  Master  so  will  they  also  try  us ; 


108 


QUESTIONS  OF  THE  DAY  AND 


may  we  through  h  mt  grace  endure  eyen  unto 

the  end. 

As  I  looked  upon  our  text  in  my  study,  another  current 
of  thought  passed  through  my  mind.  rine  text  stands  in 
a  remarkable  connection.  The  chapter  which  contains  it 
opens  with  the  parable  of  the  wedding  feast.  The  marriage 
banquet  was  spread,  the  guests  were  invited,  they  would  not 
come,  and  therefore  special  messengers  were  sent  to  compel 
as  many  as  they  could  find  to  partake  of  the  feast.  Then  as 
if  to  apprise  ministers  in  all  generations,  that  the  greatest 
hindrances  they  would  ever  meet  with  would  arise  from  the 
quibbling,  captious  spirit  of  mankind,  we  have  in  the  same 
chapter  a  long  account  of  the  various  cavillers  that  assailed 
our  Lord.  When  we  preach  the  gospel,  men  do  not  repel  us 
point  blank  by  telling  us  that  there  is  no  importance  in  our 
message  ;  but  instead  thereof  they  suggest  difficulties,  pro- 
pound frivolous  inquiries,  or  fly  off  at  a  tangent  upon  some 
other  less  important  topic.  They  evade  the  pursuit  of  the 
gospel  by  plunging  into  the  mists  of  debate.  Like  the  cut- 
tle-fish, which  escapes  by  clouding  the  water  all  around  it, 
so  do  they  avoid  the  invitations  and  declarations  of  the  Word 
of  God,  by  raising  questions  of  a  secondary  character.  It  was 
so  in  Christ's  day.  His  adversaries  met  his  arguments  with 
quibbles,  or  with  wranglings.  It  is  certainly  so  now.  We 
cannot  get  at  men ;  they  stave  us  off,  they  parry  our  home 
thrusts,  and  baffle  us  by  hiding  behind  the  shields  of  evil 
questioning.  We  cannot  get  to  push  of  bayonet  with  them  ; 
they  lie  entrenched  behind  the  ramparts  of  disputation. 
With  other  questions,  they  push  off  the  main  question,  and 
keep  far  from  them  the  soul-saving  truth.  The  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  here  teaches  his  ministers  the  art  of  overleaping  the 
sinner's  defences,  dashing  into  the  centre  of  his  stronghold, 
and  smiting  him  with  the  edge  of  the  sword,  by  means  of  the 
inquiry — "  What  think  ye  of  Christ  ?  "  We  should  deal  with 
matters  of  disputation  as  he  did — answer  them,  as  far  as  they 


THE  QUESTION  OF  THE  DAT.  109 

are  to  be  answered,  with  wisdom  and  prudence  ;  but  then  he 
would  have  us  carry  the  war  into  the  enemy's  country  and 
attack  the  human  conscience  with  the  demand,  "What  think 
ye  of  Christ  ?  "  This  morning  I  purpose  first  to  speak  upon 
questions  of  the  day,  and  then  to^press  home  upon  you  the 
question  of  the  day — the  question  of  all  questions,  in  which 
life  and  death  are  wrapped  up. 

I.  First,  a  little  upon  some  of  the  questions  of  the 
day,  not  at  all  with  any  intent  of  interesting  you  in  them, 
but  rather  of  calling  you  somewhat  away  from  them  lest  they 
too  much  engross  you. 

The  first  question  of  the  day  is  nearly  akin  to  that  which 
was  proposed  to  our  Lord  by  the  Pharisees  and  the  Herodians. 
It  deals  with  the  connection  between  politics  and  religion, 
the  vexatious  question  of  Church  and  State.  How  far  does 
Caesar's  rule  go  ?  Where  does  it  end  ?  And  where  are  we 
amenable  to  God  alone  ?  This  inquiry  in  a  very  practical 
shape  presses  upon  the  Dissenters  of  England.  I  very  largely 
attribute  the  partial  decline  of  religious  prosperity  in  some 
of  our  churches  to  the  interest  which  has  been  taken  in  the 
questions  which  naturally  arise  out  of  the  unscriptural  and 
adulterous  connection  at  present  existing  between  the  Church 
and  the  State  in  this  land.  We  have  each  of  us  a  certain 
amount  of  mental  power,  of  time,  and  of  energy,  and  no 
more  ;  and  if  it  be  a  necessity,  as  it  is  a  necessity,  that  every 
Nonconformist  should  contend  for  his  rights  and  liberties, 
and  should  never  rest  till  perfect  religious  equality  is  estab- 
lished in  the  land,  then  so  much  of  our  strength  is  taken 
away  from  higher  and  better  matters  to  attend  to  that  which 
nevertheless  it  is  unavoidable  that  we  should  consider.  It  is 
not  possible  for  us  to  cease  from  our  efforts  to  obtain  deliv- 
erance from  the  degrading  yoke  which  now  burdens  us.  We 
are  told  that  we  enjoy  toleration ;  the  very  word  is  insult. 
What  would  the  members  of  the  dominant  sect  think  if 
we  talked  of  tolerating  them  ?   We  shall  never  be  satisfied 


110 


QUESTIONS  OF  THE  DAY  AND 


until  all  religious  communities  stand  upon  an  equal  footing! 
before  the  law.  Caesar  has  no  right  to  demand  of  ms  Miafe* 
we  shall  support  the  religion  or  th 

chooses  to  select.  An  Established  CI  reh  is  a  spiritual 
tyranny.  We  wear  no  chain  upor  ^rists,  but  on  oum 
spirits  our  oppressors  have  thrust  fetters  which  gall  ua 
worse  than  bands  of  steel  We  are  ■■  >  ftpelled  as  a  pari 
of  the  nation  to  support  a  OU  Ul  oil  whose  business  it  is  tcfl 
pull  down  that  which  with  prayers  and  cears  we  live  toj 
build  up,  and  would  even  die  to  maintain.  As  Protestant 
Dissenters  we  see  the  truths  we  preach  assailed  by  an  army 
of  Anglican  Papists  whom  we  are  compelled  to  support  that 
they  may  oppose  our  most  cherished  designs.  Popery  is 
this  day  installed  and  endowed  among  us,  and  we  are  com- 
pelled to  acknowledge  its  myrmidons  as  the  clergy  of  our 
own  national  church.  That  which  our  fathers  died  to  over- 
throw we  are  compelled  to  support.  We  cannot  help  being 
indignant ;  we  should  be  less  than  men  if  our  blood  did  not 
boil  within  us  at  such  injustice.  If  men  want  Popery,  or 
any  other  form  of  error,  let  them  pay  for  it  themselves, 
and  call  it  their  own  ;  but  to  foist  their  superstition  on  us  as 
part  of  the  nation  is  an  oppression  against  which  we  appeal 
to  the  Judge  of  all  the  earth.  Men  cannot  long  bear  to 
be  saddled  with  the  maintenance  of  a  superstition  which 
they  abhor  ;  least  of  all  can  the  descendants  of  the  Ironsides 
endure  it,  who,  though  they  have  laid  aside  all  carnal 
weapons,  cannot  quite  forget  the  fields  on  which  their  fath- 
ers made  the  Cavaliers  feel  the  weight  of  their  right  arms. 
The  insult  to  our  consciences  which  is  embodied  in  the 
present  Church  and  State  is  a  daily  provocation  to  us  as  men 
and  Christians.  Of  the  present  unrighteous  domination  I 
would  say,  Down  with  it,  down  with  it,  all  ye  who  have  a 
spark  of  justice  left  in  your  souls.  As  for  us,  we  will  never 
rest  till  we  are  free  from  this  excuseless  injustice,  and  free 
we  will  be,  as  sure  as  God,  the  God  of  righteousness  yet  lives. 


THE  QUESTION  OF  THE  DAY. 


Ill 


Now,  we  cannot  think  about  all  this  and  be  earnest  about 
it — we  confess  it,  and  are  grieved  it  is  so — without  very  much 
of  our  strength  running  in  that  direction,  strength  which  we 
would  fain  spend  upon  pure,  spiritual  religion.  We  desire 
I  to  be  always  and  alone  preaching  Christ;  we  desire  to  be 
[  building  up  his  church,  and  living  at  peace  with  all  our 
brethren  ;  we  want  in  all  things  to  be  giving  unto  God 
all  our  heart  and  soul  and  strength  ;  but  this  altercation 
concerning  God  and  Caesar  will  come  in.  It  imperatively 
demands  our  attention,  and  so  it  distracts  us  in  a  measure 
from  our  higher  work  ;  and,  therefore,  the  sooner  it  is  done 
-  with  the  better.  We  cannot  be  always  taken  up  with  this 
matter,  we  count  the  gospel  to  be  worth  ten  thousand 
times  as  much.  The  Saviour,  when  the  Caesar  question  was 
brought  forward,  answered  it  most  completely.  They  said, 
"  Shall  we  pay  tribute  to  Caesar  ?  "  "  Whose  money  is  this  ?  " 
said  he.  "  Caesar's  money."  "  ^ery  well ;  you  have  evidently 
submitted  to  Caesar's  government,  you  are  under  his  sway  ; 
therefore  pay  to  him  the  tax  which  he  demands  of  you,  but 
still  by  no  means  forget  that  you  are  under  God's  govern- 
ment ;  therefore  render  unto  God  the  things  that  are  God's." 
He  drew  a  line  of  distinction  here  which  ever  ought  to  be 
maintained.  "To  Caesar  the  things  that  are  Caesar's."  To 
maintain  order,  to  repress  crime,  to  preserve  individual 
liberty,  to  protect  each  man's  rights,  this  is  Caesar's  business. 
To  enforce  religion  ?  Is  Caesar  to  do  that  ?  God  forbid, 
for  what  religion  will  Caesar  teach  us  ?  Is  he  a  Pagan  ?  he 
will  teach  us  idolatry  ;  is  he  a  Papist  ?  he  will  ordain  Popery  ; 
is  he  an  atheist  ?  he  will  establish  infidelity.  Eemember  the 
days  of  Queen  Mary,  and  see  what  Caesar  is  capable  of  when 
he  meddles  with  religion.  It  is  none  of  Caesar's  business  to 
deal  with  our  consciences,  neither  will  we  ever  obey  Caesar 
in  any  matter  which  touches  conscience.  He  may  make 
what  laws  he  will  about  religion,  but  by  our  loyalty  to  God 
we  pour  contempt  on  Caesar  when  he  usurps  the  place  of 


112 


QUESTION"  OF  THE  DAY  AND 


God.  He  is  no  more  to  us  than  the  meoi  v  begg  in  '.by- 
street if  he  goes  beyond  his  own  legitimate  iuthority.  To 
Caesar,  Caesar's;  politic*'  to  politieia 

and  prompt,  to  civil  rulers  ;  to  God,  and  4  lod  .  .  ~ni£dj 
that  are  God's  ;  and  whr-tai 1  fhc  ?e  ?  »i  *~    ;ai  ouls, 

our  consciences.    Man  Hqrisell  is  the  co  U  God 

has  stamped  his  image*  ^d  superscription 
both  are  sadly  marred  '  ^id  we  must  ~»  our 
manhood,  our  wills,  our  thoughts,  crai  j*i«<  tents,  uu.  ...ndsj 
our  hearts.  Consciences  are  for  God.  Any  law  that  touches 
a  conscience  is  null  and  void  ipso  facto,  for  the  simple  reason 
that  kings  and  parliaments  have  no  right  to  interfere  in  the 
realm  of  conscience.  Conscience  is  under  law  to  none  but 
God.  We  do  not  believe  in  liberty  of  conscience  towards 
God.  We  are  bound  towards  him,  to  believe  what  he  tells 
us,  and  to  do  what  he  bids  us ;  but  liberty  of  conscience 
in  respect  to  all  mankind  -is  the  natural  right  of  every  man 
of  woman  born,  and  it  ought  to  be  tenderly  respected. 

Our  Lord  here  lays  the  controversy  to  sleep  by  telling 
us  to  render  unto  Caesar  the  things  that  are  Caesar's,  and 
to  God  the  things  that  are  God's.  Now,  if  there  be  any 
person  here  who  is  unconverted,  but  whose  mind  is  much 
occupied  with  the  Church  and  State  disputation,  whichever 
side  of  the  question  he  may  take  up,  I  would  earnestly  say 
to  him, — important  as  this  is,  and  to  some  of  us  it  is  the 
question  which,  next  to  our  soul's  salvation,  weighs  most 
heavily  on  our  hearts,  yet  still,  first  of  all,  attend  to  the  most 
serious  inquiry — "  What  think  ye  of  Christ  ?  Is  he  the 
Wonderful,  the  Counsellor,  the  Mighty  God  in  your  esteem  ? 
Are  you  saved  by  him  ?  If  not,  I  would  bid  you  waive  the 
topic  upon  which  we  have  just  now  spoken,  until  the  higher 
question  is  answered.  When  a  man  is  at  the  point  of  death 
the  question  is,  what  can  we  do  to  restore  him  ?  When  the 
vessel  is  going  down,  the  one  thing  needful  for  every  man  is 
"How  can  I  get  to  the  boat  ?"    Sometimes  in  a  desperate 


THE  QUESTION  OF  "HE  DAY. 


113 


case,  as  that  of  sudden  shipwreck,  the  love  of  life  may  drive 
men  to  do  even  more  than  they  should  do  for  themselves, 
and  tempt  them  in  their  mortal  tenor  to  become  forgetful  of 
the  claims  of  others.  0,  I  wish  that  something  like  that 
excess  of  diligence,  if  such  could  be  would  come  upon  men's 
hearts  with  regard  to  their  souls.  There  are  enough  saved 
men  who  can  fight  out  the  ecclesi^  al  dispute  ;  you  unsaved 
ones  had  better  go  to  the  cross,  a  i  ;  there  seek  and  find  sal- 
vation. The  question  has,  doubtless,  vast  importance,  but 
with  you  the  far  more  important  matter  is  to  believe  m 
Christ.  Suppose  you  were  to  die  to-night ;  it  would  then 
be  a  small  matter  to  you  what  may  be  done  in  the  next  ses- 
sion of  Parliament  with  the  question  of  the  separation  of 
Church  and  State.  If  you  have  to  stand  before  the  bar  of 
God  before  this  year  is  out,  the  established  churches  will 
be  of  small  account  to  you  if  you  be  banished  from  heaven 
and  hope  ;  therefore,  see  to  it,  I  pray  you,  that  no  business 
interferes  with  the  business  of  your  soul. 

A  second  problem  of  the  age  also  crops  up  in  this  chap- 
ter— the  inquiry  into  the  details  of  the  future  state,  I  think 
none  of  us  remember  a  time  in  which  so  many  strange  theo- 
ries have  been  brought  forward  with  regard  to  the  doom 
of  the  ungodly,  and  the  condition- of  the  righteous.  Some 
are  teaching,  and  teaching  with  great  vehemence,  that  be- 
lievers as  well  as  others  die  at  the  time  when  they  depart 
out  of  this  world,  and  that  there  is  no  more  existence  for 
the  righteous  until  the  day  of  the  resurrection  ;  that  there 
are  no  such  things  as  immortal  souls,  but  that  even  the  godly 
moulder  into  dust  and  cease  to  be  until  the  resurrection 
raises  them  out  of  the  grave.  Now  these  are  solemn  topics, 
and  I  believe  that  it  is*  highly  needful  to  be  orthodox  upon 
them.  I  do  not  think  any  man  wastes  his  time  who  stands 
up  to  defend  the  old  faith  with  regard  to  these  things.  I 
am  persuaded  that  the  generally  received  views  are  truthful 
and  healthful,  and  that  the  novelties  which  swarm  around  us 


114  QUESTIONS  OF  THE  DA.Y  AND 

will  breed  abounding  mischief  ;  still  for  all  that,  there  are  ' 
other  matters  to  be  thought  about  besides  that  carnival  of  %• 
errors,  which  comprises  soul-sleeping,  annihilation,  universal 
restoration,  and  the  like.    Th«     is  a  prior  question,  and  that 
is  "  What  think  ye  of  Chn 

However,  since  the  facts  of  the  future  ought  to  be  k 
our  Saviour  dealt  with  the  Sadducees'  heresy,  ri 
believing  in  pure  materia  %m  and  denying  the  resurrection,  I 
the  Saviour  declared  to  them  the  certainty  of  a  future  state,  1 
and  took  out  of  their  hands  a  weapon  of  fancied  diffi- 
culty. •  In  answer  to  their  question  about  the  woman  seven 
times  married,  he  declared  that  in  the  next  world  men  are" 
neither  married  nor  given  in  marriage  ;  where  death's  rava- 
ges are  unknown  there  is  no  need  of  reproduction.  Since 
the  Sadducees  denied  that  there  were  angels,  our  Lord, 
without  noticing  their  scepticism,  declared  that  the  risen 
ones  are  as  the  angels  of  God,  thus  killing  two  birds  with  one 
stone  ;  correcting  their  views  as  to  what  men  would  be  in 
the  other  world,  and  quietly  assuming  that  there  are  spirits 
called  angels.  Then  the  great  Teacher  proved  beyond  ques- 
tion the  continuous  existence  of  the  saints,  by  reminding 
the  Sadducees  of  the  voice  that  spake  out  of  the  bush  to 
Moses.  The  Pentateuch  was  the  great  authority  of  the  Sad- 
ducees ;  they  did  not  reject  the  other  inspired  books,  but 
they  held  the  writings  of  Moses  in  superior  veneration  ; 
therefore  our  Lord  with  wisdom  selects  from  the  book  of 
Exodus  and  quotes  the  words  of  the  Lord's  address  to  Moses 
out -of  the  bush,  "I  am  the  God  of  Abraham,  and  the  God  of 
Isaac,  and  the  God  of  Jacob."  He  then  added  a  well-known 
Jewish  axiom,  "  God  is  not  the  God  of  the  dead  but  of  the 
living,"  and  routed  the  sceptics  in  -  one  battle.  It  followed 
clearly  enough  that  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob  were  living 
in  Moses'  day.  They  were  in  their  graves  ;  that  was  cer- 
tain ;  therefore  it  was  equally  certain  that  a  something  which 
was  truly  Abraham,  was  not  in  the  grave,  but  was  somewhere 


THE  QUESTION  OF  THE  DAY. 


115 


else ;  that  is  to  say,  that  the  souls  of  Abraham,  Isaac,  and 
Jacob  were  living,  and  living  in  the  possession  of  God,  though 
their  bodies  had  been  consumed  by  the  worm.  There  was 
the  Saviour's  argument.  The  patriarchs,  as  to  their  bodies, 
had  been  dead  for  some  generations  ;  yet  God  called  himself 
their  God,  and  therefore,  in  the  truest  sense,  they  could  not 
be  really  dead,  but  must  still  exist.  It  has  been  said  that 
the  nerve  of  this  argument  lies  i-  the  fact  that  Abraham, 
Isaac,  and  Jacob,  were,  as  to  their  bodies,  dead  at  the  time  ; 
— that  is  true,  and  yet  the  argument  would  be  strong  if 
Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob  had  been  alive  at  the  time. 
Note  this  well,  and  consider  the  point.  When  God  says 
to  a  man,  "  I  am  thy  God,"  what  an  infinite  blessing  he 
bestows,  and  how  much  the  words  imply  !  As  long  as  God 
exists  he  belongs  to  that  man,  and,  therefore,  the  man  him- 
self must  exist  as  long  as  God  does  ;  for  that  which  does  not 
exist  cannot  possess  anything.  That  which  possesses  any- 
thing must  itself  exist ;  hence  it  follows  that  as  Abraham 
and  all  other  saints  must  forever  possess  God,  as  their  God, 
according  to  the  word — "  I  am  thy  God  " — therefore  they 
must  eternally  exist.  In  order  to  receive  and  experience 
the  sum  and  substance  of  the  divine  promise,  nothing  less 
than  eternity  will  suffice.  When  God  bestows  a  blessing 
upon  a  man,  he  gives  him  such  a  range  of  being  as  shall 
give  him  the  capacity  for  enjoying  that  blessing.  Temporal 
blessings  have  attached  to  them  a  natural  being ;  the  vast 
spiritual  boon  of  possessing  is  infinite,  and  needs  an  everlast- 
ing existence  for  its  enjoyment.  The  saints  are  living  still, 
or  else  God  could  not  be  their  God  ;  and  the  saints  are  con- 
scious still,  for  God  is  not  the  God  of  unconscious  things 
that  by  hundreds  of  years  together  neither  think  nor  feel. 
He  is  the  God  of  those  who  are  living  in  the  sense  of  being 
ictive.  They  still  worship,  and  adore,  and  love,  and  serve  ; 
their  rest  with  Jesus  is  not  that  of  unconsciousness.  They 
are  living ;  not  merely  existing,  but  living  unto  the  living 


116 


QUESTIONS  OF  THE  DAY  AND 


God.    This  was  our  Saviour's  proof,  and  it  is  one  which  fitli 

is  overwhelmingly  convincing.  p\ 
The  doctrine  of  the  continued  existence  of  he  righteous  |e 
is  bound  up  with  that  of  the  resurrection.  Immortality  and  g, 
the  resurrection  are  kindred  truths.  When  G  A  said,  "I  Jjj 
am  the  God  of  Abraham,"  he  did  not  say  "I  am  the  God  fa 
of  Abraham's  soul ;  "  if  he  had,  the  existence  of  Abraham's  ^ 
soul  would  have  fulfilled  the  promise  ;  but  "lam  the  God  pnt 
of  Abraham,"  includes  the  whole  of  his  person,  and  Abraham  $ 
was  body  as  well  as  soul ;  it  was  needful,  therefore,  that 
Abraham's  body  should  rise  to  enjoy  the  fulness  of  God.  .  ^ 
There  was,  as  a  learned  writer  observes,  an  advance  all !  ^ 
the  way.  God  was  the  God  of  Abraham  while  he  was  in  i  w 
the  body  of  this  death  ;  he  was  the  God  of  Abraham  when  i  | 
unclothed,  and  he  will  be  the  God  of  Abraham  when  he  M 
is  clothed  upon  with  his  house  which  is  from  heaven.  « 

Now,  my  dear  hearers,  I  would  at  once  call  you  back  [j2 
to  the  main  point.    These  questions  ought  to  be  thought  of,  t!; 
and  you  should  receive  the  teaching  of  Christ  about  them,  „ 
and  yield  to  none  of  the  inventions  of  these  evil  days  ;  yet  is  | 
there  for  you  this  more  pressing  question  :  "'What  think  ye  | 
of  Christ  ?  "    Have  you  a  part  and  a  lot  in  him  ?    Are  you  „ 
saved  by  him  ?   It  seems  to  me  the  merest  folly  for  an  p 
unconverted  man  to  be  asking,  "  What  is  the  nature  of 
heaven  ?    What  is  the  form  of  the  resurrection  body  ?" 
Did  you  ever  see  a  poor,  shivering,  miserable  beggar  in 
the  street,  starving  for  want  of  food,  and  yet  curious  about 
the  exact  details  of  the  imperial  revenue  for  the  current 
quarter  of  the  year  ?    What  business  can  that  be  of  his  ? 
Is  not  this  his  first  business,  viz.,  to  win  a  morsel  of  bread  ? 
And  should  it  not  be  your  first  concern,  as  a  man,  that  you 
should  be  pardoned,  that  you  should  be  accepted  before 
God,  that  you  should  be  saved  from  hell  ?  Speculations 
upon  the  Second  Advent,  and  the  prophecies  of  Ezekiel 
and  Daniel— what  have  they  to  do  with  you  while  you  are 


THE  QUESTION  OF  TItf:  DAY. 


117 


without  Christ  ?  Are  ye  mad,  ye  unsaved  ones  ? — will  ye 
gratify  curiosity  while  your  souls  are  perishing  for  lack  of 
the  knowledge  of  Christ  ?  The  wrath  of  God  abideth  on 
you,  you  are  like  a  man  in  a  condemned  cell  waiting  for  the 
day  of  execution  ;  is  this  a  time  to  be  puzzling  your  head 
about  things  which  concern  others,  but  which  as  yet  cer- 
tainly do  not  concern  you?  "What  think  ye  of  Christ?" 
Put  other  things  aside  till  that  is  settled  ;  then  you  shall 
attend  to  them  in  order,  according  as  God  shall  help  you. 

There  are,  however,  other  questions  which  will  arise — 
[questions  upon  theology.  One  of  these  was  asked  of  our 
Saviour  by  the  Pharisees.  They  wanted  to  know  which 
was  the  first  and  chief  commandment.  They  believed  that 
Moses  had  given  them  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  com- 
mandments, corresponding  to  the  number  of  days  in  the 
year,  and  that  he  had  given  them  two  hundred  and  forty- 
leight  prohibitions.  They  made  a  great  point  of  knowing  the 
jexact  numbers.  Among  them  there  were  great  disputes 
as  to  which  entailed  the  more  sin,  the  breaking  of  this  or 
(the  breaking  of  the  other  command.  Some  maintained  that 
jthe  ceremonial  ordinances  were  more  important  than  the 
imoral  commands ;  another  party  held  that  the  ceremonial 
precepts  were  very  secondary  as  compared  with  the  moral 
law.  Scribes  and  lawyers  wrangled  without  end.  Our 
Saviour  answered  their  question  by  telling  them  that  the 
love  of  God  and  the  love  of  their  neighbor  were  the  two 
great  commandments  ;  and  so  he  ended  that  matter,  but  he 
did  not  permit  their  thoughts  to  stay  there.  He  pushed  on 
to  the  more  vital  question,  "What  think  ye  of  Christ?" 
At  the  present  day,  if  you  speak  to  a  man  about  his  soul,  he 
will  ask  you,  "Are  you  an  Arminian  or  arCalvinist  ?"  To 
jthis  we  reply,  "Dear  fellow,  are  you  saved?  that  is  your 
matter.  We  will  tell  you  what  we  are  another  time  ;  for 
the  present  you  need  a  Saviour,  and  there  ought  your  mind 
to  settle."    "Well,"  says  he,  "what  is  your  opinion  in 


118 


QUESTIONS  OF  THE  DAY  AND 


reference  to  Baptism?"  Our  answ  ^ady  enough,  for 
we  see  the  Lord's  will  plainly  enough  in  his  word,  but  we 
beg  you  to  think  more  of  Jesus  than  of  ordinances.  "  But," 
says  the  caviller,  "are  you  Presbyterian  in  church  polity,  or 
do  you  favor  Episcopacy  ?  "  Dear  friend,  what  has  that  ta]j 
do  with  you  ?  Have  you  passed  from  death  unto  life  ?  There 
is  the  point.  A  man  is  drowning  and  I  put  out  my  arm  tdS 
rescue  him,  but  he  will  not  grasp  my  hand  till  I  can  assure 
him  that  I  pronouce  a  certain  Latin  word  coiicclly,-  -is  he^ 
not  an  idiot?  My  dear  fellow,  right  quantities  or  false 
quantities  are  inconsiderable  things  compared  with  your 
being  drowned  ;  let  us  get  you  on  dry  land  first  and  then  we 
will  talk  about  long  vowels  and  short  ones.  So  also  we 
cannot  afford  to  split  hairs  while  souls  are  being  lost.  We 
are  far  from  saying  that  any  doctrine  is  inconsiderable,  and 
that  any  truth  is  unimportant, — a  grain  of  truth  is  worth 
dying  for  ;  still  there  are  solemn  facts  to  be  thought  of 
before  we  come  to  controversial  doctrines.  There  are  per- 
sons who  will  say,  "  But  how  would  you  celebrate  the  Lord's 
Supper  ?  "  I  reply,  "  We  do  not  celebrate  it  at  all  with  such 
as  you  are.  Until  you  know  the  Saviour  we  have  no  Lord's 
Supper  for  you  whatever."  "  But,"  saith  he, — and  he  begins 
to  question  you  whether  there  should  be  an  altar  of  stone  or 
a  table  of  wood,  and  whether  the  elements  should  be  dis- 
pensed by  a  priest  or  by  a  minister,  or  by  a  common  Chris- 
tian ;  "  These  are  very  weighty  matters,  and  I  must  have 
them  all  solved  at  once."  Dear  friends,  we  also  think  them 
weighty,  and  our  testimony  about  them  never  hesitates,  but 
we  are  not  going  to  dispute  with  you,  for  we  earnestly 
entreat  you  first  of  all  to  know  Christ  and  him  crucified. 
Make  your  calling  and  election  sure  and  then  we  will  be 
ready  to  give  you  reasons  from  the  Word  for  our  faith  and 
practice.  At  present,  "What  think  ye  of  Christ?"  is  the 
one  sole  inquiry  which  demands  your  care.  I  think  I  spoke 
out  plainly  enough  just  now  upon  the  first  question  referring 


THE  QUESTION  OF  THE  DAY. 


119 


to  politics  and  religion,  to  let  you  know  that  I  am  by  no 
means  lukewarm  on  minor  points  ;  and  I  would  speak  with 
equal  definiteness  here  about  doctrines  and  ordinances  if 
it  were  needful  to  show  you  that  I  do  not  undervalue  them  ; 
but  for  all  that,  "What  think  ye  of  Christ  ?  "  is  far  above  all 
other  questions  for  a  man  who  is  unredeemed,  and  I  do 
beseech  you  not  to  let  those  other  points  destroy  you,  as  they 
may  do  by  taking  away  your  thoughts  from^  the  one  thing 
needful.  Till  you  are  saved  you  want  your  mind  concen- 
trated on  the  one  essential  point.  After  that  we  will  teach 
you  to  observe  all  things  whatsoever  the  Lord  has  spoken ; 
but  just  now,  "  Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  thou 
shalt  be  saved,"  is  the  most  important  text  in  the  Bible  for 
you  to  consider. 

II.  Now  let  us  come  to  the  second  part  of  our  subject — 
the  question  of  all  questioxs,  the  question  of  the  day, 
the  question  of  all  days  until  days  shall  end, — "What  think 
ye  of  Christ  ?  " 

Observe  that  it  is  an  inquiry  which  concerns  the  Saviour. 
"What  think  ye  of  the  Messias,.the  Sent  One,  the  Christos, 
the  Anointed  One  of  God  ?"  Do  you  think  his  errand  was 
necessary  ?  Was  there  a  need  for  such  a  person  to  come 
hither  ?  Was  a  Saviour  necessary  in  your  case  ?  He  came 
to  save  men  from  their  sins  ;  have  you  any  sins  ?  Have  you 
sins  from  which  you  cannot  escape  of  yourself,  for  which 
you  can  make  no  atonement  yourself  ?  Have  you  felt 
this  ?  Do  you  feel  it  now  ?  If  you  say  you  have  no  sin, 
your  thoughts  of  Christ  will  be  that  he  was  a  needless  com- 
missioner from  heaven  as  far  as  your  case  is  concerned.  He 
came  not  to  call  those  who  need  not  to  be  saved  ;  why  should 
he  do  such  a  work  of  supererogation  ?  Have  you  felt  sin  ? 
Do  you  confess  it  ?  Do  you  believe  therefore  that  God  in 
sending  Christ  to  save  his  people  from  their  sins  has  done  a 
gracious  and  merciful  act  ?  Do  you  accept  the  person  whom 
he  has  sent  ?    Are  you  willing  to  be  saved  by  him  ?  Are 


120 


QUESTIONS  OF  THE  DAT  AND 


you  willing  to  be  saved  on  his  terms,  which  are  that  you  do 
yield  yourself  up  to  him,  that  he  shall  be  your  sole  Saviour^  , 
that  he  shall  have  all  the  glory  of  your  salvation,  that  yoif 
shall  not  be  saved  by  any  merit  of  your  own,  but  be  pardoned  I 
through  his  blood  and  righteousness  ?    Do  you  agree  taj 
that  ?    Does  your  soul  say  "  Ay  "  to  that  before  the  livings 
God  ?    If  so,  your  thoughts  of  Chi'st  are  right ;  but  if  not, 
if  you  kick  at  his  sacrifice,  and  say,  "  I  see  no  need  of  it ;  flj 
if  you  think  it  insufficient  to  put  away  sin,  and  if,  therefore,  j 
you  do  not  trust  in  it ;  then  have  you  made  God  a  liar  by  not!j 
believing  his  testimony  concerning  his  Son.    But  I  trust  thatiH 
this  morning,  your  thoughts  of  Christ  are  just  these  :  "I 
am  a  sinner  deserving  punishment  from  God  ;  I  see  that  God 
has  punished  sin  in  Jesus  Christ,  and  I  trust  myself  in  Christ 
the  atoning  sacrifice,  wholly  and  alone  ;  I  give  myself  up  to 
Christ  Jesus  that  he  may  save  me,  that  he  may  rule  me,  that 
he  may  make  me  holy,  even  as  he  is  holy.    If  he  will  but 
have  me,  I  will  have  no  opposition  to  him ;  nay  I  feel  on  the 
contrary,  a  complete  yielding  of  my  soul  to  his  divine  will, 
happy  to  be  saved  by  sucli  a  Saviour."    I  am  favored  indeed 
to  be  addressing  persons  who  feel  this  in  their  very  souls. 
Whatever  else  you  have  to  perplex  you,  beloved,  always  hold 
to  that,  and  let  your  thoughts  of  our  dear  Saviour  ever  be 
humble,  ever  sweet,  and  ever  pleasant  to  your  hearts ;  then 
shall  you  be  strong  for  sacred  service,  but  never,  never,  never,! 
cease  to  think  well  of  Jesus. 

Please  to  notice  that  this  question  not  only  concerns  the 
Saviour,  but  it  concerns  the  person  of  the  Saviour,  and  this 
is  a  point  too  often  forgotten.  We  speak  of  the  Lord's 
teachings  and  doings,  but  we  ought  more  often  to  remember 
that  he  is  a  real  personage,  not  a  name,  or  a  fiction  ;  not  a 
shadow  that  has  passed  across  the  historic  page,  but  a  man 
of  whom  we  may  ask  the  question — "Whose  Son  is  he?" 
as  the  Master  asked  it  here.  Now  shall  I  put  the  question 
to  you  ?    What  think  you  of  the  person  of  Christ  ?    Do  you 


SERMON  VIII. 


AN  OLD-FASHIOKED  CONVERSION. 
Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 

IXGTOX. 

"  Lo,  all  these  things  worketh  God  oftentimes  with  man,  to  bring 
back  his  soul  from  the  pit,  to  be  enlightened  with  the  light  of  the  liv- 
ing."— Job  xxxiii.  29,  30  * 

Some  people  are  wonderfully  enamored  of  anything  that 
is  old.  An  old  coin,  an  old  picture,  an  old  book,  or  even  a 
piece  of  antique  rubbish,  they  will  almost  worship.  The 
s  jingle  of  a  rusty  medal  is  music  to  them,  and  "  auld  nick- 
nackets"  are  as  precious  as  diamonds.  It  is  wonderful  what 
a  little  mouldiness  and  a  few  worm-holes  will  do  in  the  way 
of  increasing  Tallies.  I  confess  I  do  not  very  greatly  share 
tin  the  feeling,  at  least  it  is  no  craze  of  mine  ;  but,  neverthe- 
|  less,  all  things  being  equal,  antiquity  has  its  charms.  Old, 
1  old  stories  of  the  days  far  past,  when  time  was  young,  have  a 
I  special  interest ;  they  are  as  windows  which  permit  us  to 
igaze  down  the  dim  aisles  of  ages  long  gone  by — we  look 
|  through  them  with  mingled  curiosity  and  awe.  I  am  about 
this  morning  to  speak  to  you  concerning  an  old  conver- 
sion.   We  shall  rehearse  an  ancient  story  of  the  renewal 

*  The  real  text  is  the  whole  passage  from  verse  fourteen  to  thirty 
and  the  reader  is  requested  to  turn  to  it  before  reading  the  sermon. 


148 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


and  salvation  of  a  soul.    In  our  day  we  meet  with  pro-  | 
fessors  who  cry  down  everything  of  the  present,  and  cry  I 
up  everything  of  the  former  days,  which  they  call  the  J 
good  old  times.    Such  persons  talk  much  about  old-fash-  j 
ioned  conversions  and  hold  in  great  admiration  the  lives 
of  believers  of  the  old  school.    I  shall  this  morning  introduce  I 
you  to  an  old-fashioned  conversion,  and  explain  the  way  j 
in  which  men  were  brought  to  God  not  only  hundreds,  but  i 
thousands  of  years  ago.    I  suppose  that  Elihu  delivered  this  J 
description  of  conversion  about  the  time  of  Moses,  or  at  the  a 
period  when  Israel  was  in  Egypt,  for  almost  general  consent . 
appropriates  one  of  those  dates  to  the  Book  of  Job.  The 
record  we  shall  read  this  morning,  and  study  carefully,  j 
refers  to  the  very  very  oldest  times.    Let  this  fact  give  addi- 
tional interest  to  our  meditation ;  and  if  it  does  I  am  sure 
that  we  shall  not  lack  for  earnest  attention,  for  the  subject 
is  of  great  intrinsic  value. 

Kindly  keep  your  Bibles  open  ;  we  have  already  read  the 
chapter,  but  it  will  be  needful  to  refer  to  it  verse  by  verse. 

I.  The  matter  in  hand  is  to  compare  an  old-fashioned 
conversion  with  those  of  the  present  time,  and  the  first  note  j 
we  shall  strike  is  this  :  it  is  quite  certain  from  the  descrip-, 
tion  given  in  this  thirty-third  chapter  of  Job  that  the  sub-' 
jects  of  conversion  were  similar,  and  men  in  the  far  j 
gone  ages  were  precisely  like  men  in  these  times.  The 
passage  tells  us  nothing  about  the  stature  of  men's  bodies, 
but  as  far  as  they  are  spiritually  concerned  the  photograph  i 
which  Elihu  took  is  the  portrait  of  many  of  those  who  are 
brought  to  Jesus  now.    Reading  the  passage  over,  we  find 
that  men  in  those  times  needed  converting ;  for  they  were 
deaf  to  God's  voice  (verse  14) ;  they  were  obstinate  in  evil 
purposes  (verse  17),  and  puffed  up  with  pride.    They  needed 
chastening  to  arouse  them  to  thought,  and  required  sorell 
distress  to  make  them  cry  out  for  mercy  (verse  19-22).  They' 
were  very  loth  to  say,  "  I  have  sinned,"  and  were  not  at  i 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


149 


all  inclined  to  prayer.  Nothing  but  sharp  discipline  could 
bring  them  to  their  senses,  and  even  then  they  needed  to 
be  born  again.  Men  in  those  days  were  sinful  and  yet 
proud  ;  sinful  self  and  righteous  self  were  both  in  power  ; 
it  was  one  part  of  conversion  to  withdraw  them  from  their 
purposes  of  sin,  and  another  part  of  their  conversion  to  "hide 
pride  "  from  them.  Though  they  were  sinful  they  thought 
that  they  were  righteous,  and  though  they  were  condemned 
by  the  law  of  God  they  still  entertained  the  foud  hope  that 
they  should  by  their  own  merits  obtain  the  favor  of  the  Most 
High.  They  were  then,  as  they  are  now,  poor  as  poverty, 
and  yet  proud  of  their  wealth,  Publicans  in  sin,  and  yet 
Pharisees  in  boasting. 

It  appears  that  in  those  days  God  was  accustomed  to 
speak  to  men  and  to  be  disregarded  by  them  ;  we  are  told 
that  God  spake  "  once,  yea  twice,"  and  men  perceived  him 
not.  Their  presumptuous  slumbers  were  too  deep  to  be 
broken  by  the  call  of  love.  Samuel  said,  "  Here  am  I,  for 
thou  didst  call  me,"  but  they  slept  on  in  defiance  of  the 
Lord.  0,  how  frequently  doth  the  Lord  speak  now  to  deaf 
ears  !  He  calls,  and  men  refuse,  he  stretches  out  his  hands, 
and  men  do  not  regard  him ;  but  they  are  desperately  set 
upon  their  sins,  and  sodden  in  carnal  security,  therefore 
they  do  despite  to  his  grace,  and  ruin  their  own  souls. 

In  those  ancient  times  when  a  man  was  converted,  the 
Lord  himself  must  needs  turn  him,  omnipotence  itself  was 
necessary  to  divide  man  from  his  folly.  God's  speaking 
to  the  ear  was  not  enough  unless  he  followed  it  up  with  a 
powerful  application  to  the  heart.  Man  was  too  far  gone  to 
be  healed  by  remedies  less  than  divine — he  was  utterly  past 
hope  unless  Almighty  love  would  come  to  the  rescue  ;  verily 
the  case  is  the  same  at  this  day,  and  each  man  repeats  his 
fellow.  As  the  fish  still  bites  at  the  bait,  as  the  bird  still 
flies  into  the  snare,  as  the  beast  is  still  taken  in  the  pit,  so 
is  man  still  the  dupe  of  his  sins,  and  only  the  Lord  can  save 


150 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


him.  Salvation  was  only  wrought  by  the  gracious  influences 
of  God's  Spirit  in  the  days  of  Job,  and  it  is  only  so  accom- 
plished at  this  present  hour.  Men  were  lost  then  as  now  ;  I 
men  thought  they  were  not  lost  then,  and  they  are  equally 
conceited  now.  Into  the  house  of  the  divine  Physician  the 
same  class  of  persons  enter  as  were  welcomed  and  healed 
by  him  ages  ago he  has  the  same  blind  eyes  and  deaf  ears 
to  open,  hearts  still  require  to  be  transformed  from  stone 
to  flesh,  and  leprosies  to  be  exchanged  for  health  by  his 
Sovereign  touch.  The  Spirit  from  the  four  winds  breathed 
on  a  valley  covered  with  dry  bones  in  the  days  of  the  fathers, 
and  he  comes  forth  still  to  work  upon  the  like  scene  of  death. 
Man  has  not  outgrown  his  sins.  As  it  was  in  the  beginning 
it  is  now,  and  so  it  ever  will  be  while  that  which  is  born 
of  the  flesh  is  flesh  ;  as  were  the  sires  such  are  their  sons, 
and  such  will  our  sons  be  in  their  turn  ;  so  that  the  process 
of  conversion  needs  to  be  the  same,  and  "  all  these  things 
God  worketh  oftentimes  with  man." 

II.  The  second  note  we  shall  strike  is  this,  that  in  those 
olden  times  the  worker  of  conversion  was  the  same, — 
"  all  these  things  God  worketh"  The  whole  process  is  by  J 
Elihu  ascribed  to  God,  and  every  Christian  can  bear  witness 
that  the  Lord  is  the  great  worker  now  ;  he  turns  us,  and 
we  are  turned.  We  read  in  verse  fourteen,  that  at  first 
the  Lord  wrought  upon  men  by  speaking  to  them,  once, 
yea,  twice  ;  he  also  brought  truth  home  to  their  minds  and 
instructed  them  ;  and  so  changed  their  purposes  and  hum- 
bled their  hearts.  In -the  same  manner  the  Lord  worketh 
now.  Conversion  is  a  change  which  concerns  the  mind,  the 
affections,  the  spirit ;  it  is  not  a  physical  manipulation  as 
some  foolish  persons  fancy,  who  appear  to  think  that  God 
converts  men  by  force,  and  turns  them  over  as  a  man  would 
roll  a  stone.  The  Lord  operates  upon  men  as  men,  not 
as  blocks  of  wood  ;  God  speaks  to  them,  instructs  them, 
reveals  truth  to  them,  encourages  them  to  hope,  and  gra- 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


151 


eiously  influences  them  for  good.  Man  is  left  free,  for 
"  God  speaketh  once,  yea,  twice,  yet  man  perceiveth  it  not," 
and  yet  in  God's  own  wise  and  suitable  manner,  he  is  at 
length  led  to  cry,  "  I  have  sinned  and  perverted  that  which 
is  right,  and  it  profited  me  not." 

But  in  those  times,  as  now,  it  was  necessary  that  God 
should  do  more  than  speak  to  the  outer  ear,  he  therefore 
came  nearer  still,  and  by  his  Holy  Spirit  led  men  really  to 
hear  what  he  spake.  He  did  not  leave  men  to  their  wills, 
neither  did  he  trust  their  conversion  to  the  eloquence  of 
preachers,  or  to  the  cogency  of  arguments,  but  he  himself 
came  and  opened  men's  ears,  and  pressed  the  truth  home  upon 
their  understandings,  and  made  it  operative  upon  their  entire 
nature.  Man  was  so  proud  that  no  one  else  could  humble  him 
but  God  ;  and  he  was  so  wilful,  that  no  one  could  withdraw 
him  from  his  purpose  but  the  Lord  alone  ;  but  the  Lord  in 
condescension  did  the  deed,  and  made  the  man  obedient  and 
humble.  Indeed,  the  Lord  is  described  in  this  chapter  as 
the  main  cause  of  all  the  work  accomplished.  Whereas,  a 
ransom  was  needed  to  deliver  men  from  going  down  to  the 
pit,  it  is  the  Lord's  voice  which  cried,  "  I  have  found  a  ran- 
som." Whereas,  even  when  the  ransom  was  found,  men  did 
not  know  it,  and  would  not  receive  it ;  it  was  God  who  sent  a 
messenger,  one  of  a  thousand,  to  show  unto  man  his  upright- 
ness, and  to  proclaim  the  great  provision  made  for  restoring 
man  to  his  primeval  state.  It  is  the  Lord  who  delivers  the 
soul  from  the  pit,  that  man's  life  may  see  the  light.  In  this 
chapter  it  is  God  that  visits,  that  speaks,  chastens,  instructs, 
enlightens,  consoles,  renews  and  saves,  from  first  to  last. 
God  worketh  all  in  all.  Salvation  is  of  the  Lord,  it  is  not  of 
man,  neither  by  man  ;  neither  is  it  of  the  will  of  man,  nor 
of  the  flesh,  nor  of  the  blood,  nor  of  birth,  but  of  the  will  of 
God.  The  purpose  of  God  and  the  power  of  God  work  salva- 
tion from  first  to  last.  What  a  blessing  this  is  for  us,  for,  if 
salvation  were  of  ourselves,  who  among  us  would  be  saved  ? 


152 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


But  he  hath  "  laid  help  upon  one  that  is  mighty  ;"  God  also 
is  our  strength  and  our  song,  for  he  himself  has  become  our 
salvation.  He  who  has  begun  the  good  work  will  carry  it  on. 
Christ  is  the  Alpha,  and  Christ  is  the  Omega,  the  "  author 
and  the  finisher  of  our  faith."  So  we  have  two  points  in  this 
ancient  conversion  in  which  it  was  just  like  our  own,  the 
same  men  to  be  operated  upon,  and  the  same  God  to  work 
the  miracles  of  grace. 

III.  The  most  interesting  point  to  you  will  probably  be 
the  third  :  the  means  used  to  work  conversion  in  those 

DISTANT  AGES  WERE  VERY  MUCH  THE  SAME  AS  THOSE  EM- 
PLOYED now.  There  were  differences  in  outward  agencies, 
but  the  inward  modus  operandi  was  the  same.  There  was  a 
difference  in  the  instruments,  but  the  way  of  working  was 
the  same.  Kindly  turn  to  the  chapter,  at  the  fifteenth 
verse  ;  you  find  there  that  God  first  of  all  spoke  to  men, 
but  they  regarded  him  not,  and  then  he  spoke  to  them  effect- 
ually by  means  of  a  dream  :  "In  a  dream,  in  a  vision  of  the 
night,  when  deep  sleep  falleth  upon  men,  in  slumberings 
upon  the  bed."  Now,  this  was  an  extraordinary  means  of 
grace,  seldom  used  now.  In  this  the  distant  ages  differ 
from  the  present.  A  dream,  though  it  be  in  itself  but  the 
phantasm  of  sleep,  may  be  employed  by  God  to  arouse  the 
mind  towards  eternal  things.  Dreams  of  death  and  judg- 
ment to  come  have  frequently  had  a  very  alarming  effect 
upon  the  conscience,  while  visions  of  celestial  glory  have 
impressed  the  heart  with  desires  after  infinite  bliss.  As 
Dry  den  says  of  some  men — 

"  In  sleep  they  fearful  precipices  tread  ; 
Or  shipwreck'd,  labor  to  some  distant  shore," 

so  others  have  in  their  slumbers  shivered  at  the  gates  of  hell, 
or  even  been  tossed  upon  its  fiery  waves,  and  thoughts  conse- 
quent upon  such  dreams  have,  by  God's  grace,  occasionally 
been  rendered  permanently  useful,  though  I  fear  it  is  not 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


153 


often  so.  In  the  days  of  Elihu,  however,  dreams  were  much 
more  frequently  the  way  in  which  God  spake,  for  there  were 
few  messengers  from  God  to  interpret  his  mind,  no  openly 
declared  gospel,  and  few  assemblies  for  instruction  by  hearing 
the  word  ;  and  what  is  more,  there  was  then  no  written  word  * 
of  God.  \  In  those  early  times  they  had  no  inspired  books  at 
all,  so  thatTTacking  the  Bible,  and  lacking  the  frequent  min- 
istrations of  God's  servants,  the  Lord  was  pleased  to  supply 
their  deficiencies  by  speaking  to  men  in  the  visions  of  the 
night.  I  say  again,  we  must  not  expect  the  Lord  to  return 
to  the  general  use  of  so  feeble  an  agency  now  that  he  em- 
ploys others  which  are  far  more  effectual.  It  is  much  more 
profitable  for  you  to  have  the  word  in  your  houses  which  you 
can  read  at  all  times,  and  to  have  God's  ministers  to  proclaim 
clearly  the  gospel  of  Jesus,  than  it  would  be  to  be  dependent 
upon  visions  of  the  night. 

The  means,  therefore,  outwardly  may  have  changed,  but 
still,  whether  it  be  by  the  dream  at  night,  or  by  the  sermon 
on  the  Sabbath,  the  power  is  just  the  same  :  namely,  in  the 
word  of  God,  God  speaks  to  men  in  dreams,  if  so,  he  speaks 
to  them  all  nothing  more  and  nothing  different  from  what 
he  speaks  in  the  written  word.  If  any  come  to  you  and  say, 
"  I  have  dreamed  this  or  that,"  and  it  be  not  in  the  Scrip- 
tures, away  with  their  dreams  !  If  anything  should  occur  in 
your  own  mind  in  vision  which  is  not  already  revealed  in  the 
Book  of  God,  put  it  away,  it  is  an  idle  fancy  not  to  be  re- 
garded. Woe  to  that  man  whose  religion  is  the  baseless  fabric 
of  dreams,  he  will  one  day  wake  up  to  find  that  nothing  short 
of  realities  could  save  him.  "We  have  the  more  sure  word  of 
testimony,  unto  which  we  do  well  if  we  take  heed  as  unto 
a  light  that  shineth  in  a  dark  place.  Conversions,  then, 
in  the  old  times,  used  to  be  by  the  word  of  God  ;  it  came  in 
a  different  way,  but  it  was  the  same  word  and  Jhe  same 
truth.  At  this  time  faith  cometh  by  hearing,  and  hearing 
by  the  word  of  God,  and  at  bottom  that  was.  precisely 
7* 


154 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


the  way  in  which  faith  came  to  men  in  those  distant 
periods. 

Now,  observe,  that  in  addition  to  the  external  coming 
of  the  word,  it  seems  from  the  chapter  before  us  in  the  six- 
•  teenth  verse,  that  men  were  converted  by  having  their  ears 
opened  by  God.  Alas,  men's  ears  are  still  stopped  up  !  An 
old  Puritan  has  mentioned  seven  forms  of  what  he  calls  "ear 
stoppers,"  which  need  to  be  taken  out  of  the  human  ear. 
They  are  frequently  blocked  up  by  ignorance  ;  they  know 
not  the  importance  and  value  of  the  truth,  and,  therefore,  j 
they  refuse  to  give  earnest  heed  to  it ;  judging  it  to  be  an  a 
idle  tale,  they  go  their  way  to  their  farms  and  to  their  mer-  "j 
chandise.  Some  ears  are  stopped  up  by  unbelief  ;  they  have 
heard  the  glad  tidings  of  salvation,  but  they  have  not  re- 
ceived it  as  an  infallible  revelation  from  heaven,  a  message 
backed  by  divine  authority.  Scepticism  and  philosophy, 
falsely  so  called,  barricade  Eargate  against  the  assaults  of 
Emmanuel's  captains,  so  that  even  the  great  battering-rams 
of  the  gospel  prove  powerless  to  force  an  entrance.  "He 
could  not  do  many  mighty  works  then  because  of  their  unbe- 
lief ! "  Other's  ears  are  stopped  up  by  impenitence  ;  the 
hardness  of  the  heart  causes  a  deadness  of  the  ear.  You  may 
discharge  the  great  cannons  of  the  law  in  the  ears  of  some 
men,  but  they  will  not  stir  ;  the  thunders  of  God  startle  the 
wild  beasts  of  the  wood,  but  impenitence  is  not  moved 
thereby.  The  gospel  itself  soundeth  upon  such  ears  with 
no  more  effect  than  upon  a  marble  statue ;  the  groans  of 
Calvary  are  nothing  to  them.  Some  ears  are  stopped  by 
prejudice  ;  they  have  made  up  their  minds  as  to  what  the 
gospel  ought  to  be,  and  they  will  not  hear  it  as  it  is  ;  they 
have  set  up  for  themselves  a  standard  of  what  the  truth 
should  be,  and  that  standard  is  a  false  one,  for  they  have 
put  bitter  for  sweet  and  sweet  for  bitter,  darkness  for  light 
and  light  for  darkness.  Prejudice  against  the  preacher, 
or  against  the  denomination  are  but  forms  of  the  same  evil : 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


155 


they  make  men  to  be  as  Ulysses  was  when  his  ears  were  sealed 
with  wax,  for  they  are  even  as  deaf  men.  The  entrance 
into  many  ears  is  also  effectually  barred  by  the  love  of  sin. 
He  who  loves  vice  will  not  hear  of  repentance  ;  the  lover  of 
pleasure  detests  holy  mourning;  the  licentious  think  holi- 
ness to  be  another  name  for  slavery.  The  man  who  finds 
delight  in  sin  is  a  deaf  adder  whom  the  wise  charmer  cannot 
charm ;  the  poison  of  asps  is  under  his  tongue,  and  he  can- 
not renounce  his  deadly  hate  of  a  gospel  which  rebukes  his 
evil  ways.  It  would  be  vain  to  teach  cleanliness  to  the  sow 
which  wallows  in  the  mire — it  loves  uncleanliness,  and  after 
uncleanliness  will  it  go.  Some  ears  are  stopped  through 
pride  ;  the  plain,  unflattering,  humbling  gospel  of  the  sin- 
ner's Saviour  is  not  to  their  taste.  The  gospel  for  lost  sin- 
ners, they  think,  is  not  addressed  to  them,  for  they  are 
almost  good  enough,  and  are  by  no  means  worthy  of  any 
great  blame,  or  in  danger  of  any  great  punishment.  When 
they  acknowledge  their  sinnership  in  words  they  feel  it  not 
in  their  hearts,  therefore  they  hear  not  the  truth  in  the  love 
of  it.  If  the  gospel-pipe  could  be  tuned  to  notes  of  flattery, 
to  praise  the  dignity  of  man,  they  would  attend  to  its  music, 
but  a  gospel  for  vulgar  sinners  \  How  can  their  noble  souls 
endure  it  ?  With  their  fine  feathers  all  ruffled  in  disdain, 
they  turn  away  in  a  rage.  Alas  !  how  many  ears  are  stopped 
through  worldliness.  /If  you  stand  in  a  street  where  traffic 
is  abundant — where  the  constant  thunder  of  rumbling  wheels 
creates  a  din — it  would  be  difficult  to  preach  so  as  to  command 
an  audience,  for  the  abundant  sound  would  prevent  all  hear- 
ing ;  and,  to  a  great  extent,  the  mass  of  mankind  are  just  in 
that  position  as  to  the  joyful  sound  of  the  gospel ;  the  rumb- 
ling of  the  wheels  of  commerce,  the  noise  of  trade  and  the 
cries  of  competition,  the  whirl  of  cares  and  the  riot  of  pleas- 
ures— all  these  drown  the  persuasive  voice  of  heavenly  love, 
so  that  men  hear  no  more  of  it  than  they  would  hear  a  pin 
fall  in  the  midst  of  a  hurricane  at  sea,    Only  when  God 


156 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


unstops  the  ear  is  the  still  small  voice  of  truth  heard  in  the 
chambers  of  the  heart. 

Now  it  is  clear  to  every  thoughtful  person  that  all  these 
ear-stoppers  existed  in  the  olden  times  as  well  as  now,  and 
therefore  the  same  work  of  opening  the  passage  to  the  heart 
was  necessarily  performed.  Dreams  did  not  convert  sinners 
of  the  patriarchal  age,  however  vivid  they  might  be,  nor  did 
prophetic  warnings  by  themselves  arouse  them, — the  hand  of 
him  who  created  the  ear  was  needed  to  cleanse  and  circumcise 
it,  ere  the  truth  could  find  admission. 

Note  the  next  sentence,  he  "  sealeth  their  instruction." 
That  was  the  means  of  conversion  in  the  olden  times.  God 
brought  the  truth  down  upon  the  soul  as  you  press  a  seal 
upon  the  wax  ;  you  bear  upon  the  seal  to  make  the  impress, 
and  even  thus  the  power  of  God  pressed  home  the  word. 
Truth  is  heard  by  men,  but  they  forget  it  unless  the  Holy 
Spirit  takes  the  truth  and  puts  it  home,  and  lays  his  force 
upon  it,  and  then  it  makes  a  stamp  upon  the  conscience,  upon 
the  memory,  and  upon  the  entire  manhood.  Perhaps,  also, 
by  sealing  here  is  meant  confirming.  A  thing  is  sealed  when 
it  is  established  by  testimony  and  witness  :  under  hand  and 
seal  as  we  say.  Now  the  Holy  Spirit  has  a  way  of  making 
truth  to  become  manifest  to  men,  and  cogent  upon  their 
minds  by  bearing  his  witness  with  it ;  so  that  they  cannot 
help  feeling  that  it  is  true.  He  sets  it  in  such  a  light,  that 
they  cannot  dispute  it,  but  yield  full  consent  to  it,  their 
conscience  being  overwhelmingly  convinced. 

Dear  friends,  I  pray  God  the  Holy  Spirit  to  seal  home 
the  word  we  speak  to  each  one  of  you,  that  from  hearers  you 
may  grow  into  believers.  I  know  you  will  remain  hearers 
only  unless  that  sacred  sealing  shall  take  place  ;  but  let  that 
come  upon  you  and  your  soul  will  bear  the  gospel  stamped 
into  its  very  texture,  never  more  to  be  effaced.  If  the  Spirit 
of  God  thus  seals  you,  you  will  be  sealed  indeed. 

By  sealing  is  also  sometimes  meant  preserving  and  setting 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


157 


apart,  as  we  seal  up  documents  or  treasures  of  great  value, 
that  they  may  be  secure.  In  this  sense  the  gospel  needs 
sealing  up  in  our  hearts.  We  forget  what  we  hear  till  God 
the  Holy  Ghost  seals  it  in  the  soul,  and  then  it  is  pondered 
and  treasured  up  in  the  heart  :  it  becomes  to  us  a  goodly 
pearl,  a  divine  secret,  a  peculiar  heritage.  This  sealing 
is  a  main  point  in  conversion.  What  thousands  of  sermons 
many  of  you  have  heard,  but  the  instruction  has  never 
been  sealed  to  you,  and,  therefore,  you  remain  unsaved.  I 
cannot  bear  to  think  of  your  unhappy  case,  and  I  beseech 
those  who  love  the  Lord  to  pray  that  our  discourses, 
or  the  sermons  of  some  one  else,  or  the  Bible  itself,  may 
be  sealed  of  the  Lord  upon  these  my  unhappy  hearers,  that 
they  may  be  converted  and  saved.  0  for  the  Lord's  sealing 
hand  upon  men's  hearts  !  Send,  Lord,  by  whomsoever  thou 
wilt  send,  and  by  thy  servant  also.  Give  the  hearing  ear, 
and  then  engrave  thy  gospel  upon  an  understanding  heart. 
Thou  art  able  to  do  this,  and  in  faith  we  seek  it  at  thy  hands, 
0  Lord  God  of  our  salvation.  In  this  manner  men  were 
converted  in  the  olden  times  ;  ears  were  opened  and  hearts 
were  sealed. 

It  appears,  also,  that  the  Lord,  in  those  days,  employed 
providence  as  a  help  towards  conversion — and  that  provi- 
dence was  often  of  a  very  gentle  kind,  for  it  preserved  men 
from  death.  Read  the  eighteenth  verse  : — "  He  keepeth 
back  his  soul  from  the  pit,  and  his  life  from  perishing  by 
the  sword."  Many  a  man  has  had  the  current  of  his  life 
entirely  changed  by  an  escape  from  imminent  peril ;  solemn 
thoughts  have  taken  possession  of  his  f  ornferly  careless  mind, 
and  he  has  said  to  himself,  "  Has  God  preserved  me  from 
this  danger,  then  let  me  be  grateful  to  him.  He  must  have 
had  a  purpose  in  my  preservation,  let  me  find  out  what  it  is, 
and  thankfully  endeavor  to  answer  to  it."  Have  any  of 
you,  my  hearers,  escaped  from  shipwreck  ?  Is  there  one  here 
who  has  escaped  from  accident  upon  the  iron  way  ?  Are 


158 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


you  one  of  a  handful  who  were  snatched  from  between  the 
very  jaws  of  death  ?  Have  you  risen  up  from  a  fever  which 
laid  you  very  low  ?  Are  you  now  almost  the  only  survivor 
of  a  family,  all  the  members  of  which, -except  yourself,  have 
been  taken  away  by  consumption,  or  some  other  hereditary 
disease  ?  Are  you  a  remarkable  monument  of  sparing 
mercy  ?  Then,  I  pray  yon,  let  the  long-suffering  of  God 
lead  you  to  repentance,  for  it  has  led  many  before  you,  and 
it  is  intended  that  it  should  do  the  like  for  you.  Yield  to 
the  gentle  pressure  of  loving  kindness,  even  as  the  flowers 
yield  their  perfumes  to  the  sunshine  :  do  not  need  to  be 
crushed  and  bruised  like  Oriental  spice  beneath  the  pestle. 
Tenderly  doth  the  Lord  call  you  to  himself,  and  say,  H.  I 
have  spared  thee  from  the  grave,  I  have  also  kept  thy  guilty 
soul  from  going  down  to  hell,  I  have  placed  thee  to-day 
under  the  sound  of  the  gospel ;  I  am,  by  my  servant,  calling 
upon  thee  to  turn  unto  me  and  live.  Wilt  thou  not  hear 
me  ?  Thou  art  still  on  praying  ground  and  pleading  terms 
with  me — wilt  thou  not  consider  all  this  ? 99  Thus  God  , 
speaketh  now  by  actions,  which  speak  more  loudly  than 
words,  and  it  seems  that  in  the  same  way  he  was  wont  to 
speak  to  men  in  the  days  gone  by,  so  that  providential  cir- 
cumstances were  often  the  means  of  conversion. 

But,  further,  it  seems  that,  as  Elihu  puts  it,  sickness  was 
a  yet  more  effectual  awakener  in  the  common  run  of  cases. 
Observe  the  nineteenth  verse,  "  He  is  chastened  also  with 
pain  upon  his  bed,  and  the  multitude  of  his  bones  with 
strong  pain  ;  so  that  his  life  abhorreth  bread,  and  his  soul 
dainty  meat."  Severe  pain  destroyed  appetite  and  brought 
on  extreme  lassitude  and  distaste  of  life  ;  but  all  this  was 
sent  in  mercy  to  fetch  the  wanderer  home.  Yes,  men  get 
space  for  thought  when  they  are  shut  up  in  the  chamber  of 
sickness.  While  the  mill-wheel  went  on  and  on  and  on, 
they  could  not  hear  God  speak,  but  when  its  hum  is  hushed 
the  warning  voice  sounds  forth  clearly.    There  in  silence  the  ■ 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


159 


patient  tosses  on  the  bed,  wakeful  at  night,  and  fearful  by 
day,  and  then  conscience  lifts  up  its  clamor  and  will  be 
heard  ;  then,  too,  the  spirit  of  God  seizes  an  opportunity  to 
speak  to  an  awakened  conscience,  and  he  convinces  the  man 
of  sin.  How  much  some  of  us  owe  to  a  bed  of  sickness  !  I 
do  not  desire  for  any  unconverted  person  here  that  he  should 
be  ill,  but  if  that  should  be  the  way  to  make  him  think, 
repent,  and  believe,  I  could  earnestly  pray  for  it.  I  believe 
the  Lord  has  often  preached  to  men  in  hospitals  who  never 
heard  him  in  churches  and  chapels ;  fever  and  cholera  have 
been  heard  by  those  whom  ministers  could  nbt  reach.  If  we 
could  banish  pain  and  sickness  from  the  world,  it  may  be  we 
should  be  robbing  righteousness  of  two  of  her  most  impressive 
evangelists.  What  Jonah  was  to  Nineveh,  sickness  has  been 
to  many  a  man.  Like  Elijah  also,  it  has  cried  in  the  soul, 
"  Choose  ye  this  day  whom  ye  will  serve."  Disease  has  been  a 
grim  orator  for  God,  and  with  an  eloquence  not  to  be  resisted, 
it  has  made  the  hearts  of  men  to  bow  before  its  message.  If 
there  are  any  here  who  have  lately  been  thus  afflicted,  I 
would  ask  them  whether  God  has  blessed  it  to  their  souls.  I 
earnestly  pray  that  they  may  not  be  hardened  by  it,  for 
in  that  case  there  is  fear  that  God  will  say,  "  Why  should  ye 
be  smitten  any  more,  ye  will  revolt  more  and  more  !"  and 
he  may  add,  "  I  will  let  them  alone,  they  are  given  unto 
idols.  I  have  smitten  them  till  their  whole  head  is  sick, 
and  their  whole  heart  is  faint.  I  have  made  them  to  be 
so  near  death's  door,  that  from  the  crown  of  the  head  even 
to  the  foot  they  are  all  wounds  and  bruises  through  the 
chastenings  of  my  rod.  I  will  give  them  up,  and  no  more 
will  I  deal  with  them  in  a  way  of  grace."  Great  God,  have 
pity  still,  and  make  thy  chastisements  effectual  to  their  souls. 
Now,  note  well  that  we  do  not  assert  that  all  persons  who 
are  saved  are  awakened  by  sickness  ;  far  from  it,  all  that  we 
are  now  taught  is  that  many  are  so  aroused,  and  that  wa3 
the  case  in  the  instance  described  by  Elihu. 


160 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


In  addition  to  this  sickness,  the  person  whom  God  saved 
was  even  brought  to  be  apprehensive  of  death — "Yea,  his  I 
soul  draweth  near  unto  the  grave,  and  his  life  to  the  destroy-  I 
ers."    When  a  man  is  made  to  lie  upon  his  bed  on  the  brink 
of  hell  and  look  into  another  world,  that  sight  may  be  sa- 
credly blessed  to  him.     0,  it  is  no  small  thing  to  peer  into 
eternity,  and  to  make  out,  amid  the  horrid  gloom,  no  shapes 
of  hope  but  ghastly  forms  of  hideous  woe.     To  have  behind  I 
one  the  memory  of  a  mis-spent  life,  to  have  above  one  an  f 
angry  God,  to  have  within  one  the  aches  of  the  body  j 
and  the  pangs  6t  remorse,  and  to  have  beneath  one  the  bot-  & 
tomless  pit  yawning  with  its  lurid  fires  !     What  can  be 
worse  ?   This  side  of  hell,  what  can  be  worse  than  a  tor- 
tured  conscience  ?    This  has  sometimes  made  men  wake 
up  from  a  life-slumber  and  compelled  them  to  cry,  "What  | 
must  we  do  to  be  saved  ?"     I  could  wish  that  every  man 
here  who  has  remained  unmoved  by  gentle  means,  might  . 
have  some  such  experience.    It  were  better  for  you  to  be 
saved  so,  as  by  fire,  than  not  to  be  saved  at  all. 

But,  now,  notice  that  all  this  did  not  lead  the  person 
into  comfort ;  although  he  was  impressed  by  the  dream 
and  sickness,  and  so  on,  yet  the  ministry  of  some  God-sent 
ambassador  was  wanted.  "  If  there  be  a  messenger  with 
him,"  that  is  a  man  sent  of  God— "  an  interpreter,"  one 
who  can  open  up  obscure  things  and  translate  God's  mind 
into  man's  language — "one  among  a  thousand,"  for  a  true 
preacher,  expert  in  dealing  with  souls  is  a  rare  person  "to 
show  unto  man  his  uprightness,  then  he  is  gracious  unto 
him."  God  could  save  souls  without  ministers,  but  he  does 
not  often  do  it ;  he  could  bring  men  to  Jesus  without  the 
call  from  the  lip  of  his  sent  servants,  but  as  a  general  rule 
conversion  in  the  olden  times  needed  the  messenger  and 
the  interpreter,  and  it  needs  them  still  :  "  How  shall  they 
believe  on  him  of  whom  they  have  not  heard,  and  how  shall 
they  hear  without  a  preacher,  and  how  shall  they  preach  un- 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


16.1 


less  they  be  sent."  I  pray  that  many  of  you,  dear  brethren, 
who  know  the  Lord,  may  become  preachers  to  others ;  that 
you  may  be  such  successful  messengers  of  mercy  to  poor 
broken  hearts,  that  you  may  be  to  them  picked  and  choice 
men  like  one  out  of  a  thousand.  I  entreat  you  to  pray  for 
me  also,  that  I  may  have  a  share,  and  a  large  share,  in 
this  blessed  employment,  and  that  to  many  God  may  say 
through  me,  "Deliver  him  from  going  down  to  the  pit,  for 
I  have  found  a  ransom." 

IV.  Fourthly,  and  with  too  much  brevity,  the  objects 

AIMED  AT  IN  THE  OLD  CONVERSIONS  WERE  JUST  THE  SAME 

as  those  that  are  aimed  at  now-a-days.  Will  you  kindly 
look  at  the  seventeenth  verse.  The  first  thing  that  God  had 
to  do  with  the  man  was  to  withdraw  from  him  his  purpose. 
He  finds  him  set  upon  sin,  upon  rebellion,  upon  carnal 
pleasure,  upon  everything  that  is  selfish  and  worldly ;  and 
conversion  turns  him  away  from  such  evil  purpose  ;  it 
was  so  then,  it  is  so  now.  This  turning  of  an  obstinate 
will  towards  God  and  holiness  is,  however,  no  easy  matter ; 
to  stay  the  sun  in  his  course,  or  reverse  the  marches  of  the 
moon  would  not  be  a  harder  task. 

The  next  object  of  the  divine  work  was  to  hide  pride 
from  man,  for  man  will  stick  to  self-righteousness  as  long  as 
he  can.  Never  does  limpet  adhere  to  its  rock  more  firmly 
than  a  sinner  to  his  own  merits,  although  indeed  he  has 
none.  Like  the  old  Greek  hero  in  the  mythology,  the 
natural  man  sits  down  on  the  stone  of  self-esteem,  and 
Hercules  himself  cannot  tear  him  from  it.  When  he  is 
even  in  outward  character  vile,  he  still  fancies  that  there 
is  some  good  thing  in  him,  and  to  that  fancy  he  will  tena- 
ciously cling ;  so  that  it  is  a  work  of  divyie  power,  an  effort 
of  the  august  omnipotence  of  heaven,  to  get  a  man  away 
from  his  innate  and  desperate  pride. 

Beloved,  another  great  object  of  conversion  is  to  lead  man 
to  a  confession  of  his  sin.    Hence  we  find  it  said  in  the 


162 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


twenty-seventh  verse,  "  He  looketh  upon  man,  and  if  any 
say  I  have  sinned,  and  perverted  that  which  was  right,  and 
it  profited  me  not,  he  will  deliver  his  soul  from  going  into 
the  pit."  Man  hates  confession  to  his  God,  I  mean  humble, 
personal,  hearty  confession.  He  will  go  to  a  priest  and 
answer  all  his  filthy  questions,  but  he  will  not  confess  to  the 
Lord.  He  will  gabble  over  words  which  he  calls  a  "general 
confession,"  but  true,  heart- felt  confession  he  shrinks  from — 
he  will  not  come  to  the  publican's  cry  if  he  can  help  it.  He 
will  not  say  frankly  from  his  heart,  "  I  have  sinned."  He 
will  not  own  or  confess  the  perverseness  of  his  nature  and 
say,  "I  have  perverted  that  which  is  right;"  nor  can  you 
get  him  to  own  the  folly  and  stupidity  of  his  sin,  so  as  to 
say,  "it  profited  me  not."  But  conversion  brings  him  to 
his  knees,  conversion  pulls  up  the  sluices  of  his  soul,  and 
makes  him  pour  out  his  confessions  before  the  Most  High  ; 
and  when  this  is  done,  then  salvation  has  come  to  the  man's 
soul,  for  God  desires  man  to  put  himself  into  the  place  of 
condemnation  in  order  that  he  may  be  able  to  say  to  him, 
(e  I  forgive  thee  freely."  The  Lord  shuts  us  up  to  hopeless- 
ness and  helplessness  in  order  that  he  may  come,  as  a  God 
of  grace,  and  display  his  abounding  mercy.  All  our  hope 
lies  in  him,  and  all  other  hopes  are  delusions.  The  great 
work  in  conversion  is  not  to  make  people  better,  so  that 
they  may  come  to  God  on  a  good  footing,  it  is  to  strip  them 
completely  and  lay  them  low,  so  that  God  may  come  to  them 
when  they  are  on  a  bad  footing,  or  rather  on  no  footing 
at  all,  but  down  in  the  dust  at  his  feet.  The  Son  of  man  is 
come  to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  is  lost,  but  it  wants  God 
himself  to  convince  men  that  they  are  lost ;  and  the  Spirit's 
work  of  soul-humbling  is  just  this, — to  get  man  to  feel  so 
diseased  that  he  will  accept  the  physician  ;  to  get  him  to 
feel  so  poor  that  he  will  accept  the  charity  of  heaven  ;  to  get 
him  to  know  that  he  is  so  stripped,  that  he  will  no  longer 
be  proud  of  his  fig  leaves,  but  will  be  willing  to  take  the  robe 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


163 


of  righteousness  which  Christ  has  wrought  out.  Conviction 
is  sent  to  kill  the  man,  to  break  him  in  pieces,  to  bury  him, 
to  let  him  know  his  own  corruption  ;  and  all  this  as  a  pre- 
liminary to  his  quickening  and  restoration.  We  must  see 
the  bones  in  the  valley  to  be  dead  and  dry,  or  we  shall  not 
hear  the  voice  out  of  the  excellent  glory,  saying,  "  Thus 
saith  the  Lord,  (  Ye  dry  bones  live  ! ' "  May  God  in  his 
mercy  teach  us  what  all  this  means ;  and  may  we  all  expe- 
rience an  old-fashioned  conversion. 

V.  Fifthly,  the  process  of  conversion  in  days  of  yore 
exactly  resembles  that  which  is  wrought  in  us  now  as  to 
its  shades.  The  shadowy  side  wore  the  same  sombre  hues 
as  now.  First  of  all,  the  man  refused  to  hear  ;  God  spake 
once,  yea  twice,  and  man  regarded  him  not ;  here  was  obsti- 
nate rebellion.  His  heart  was  as  an  adamant  stone.  How 
true  is  that  to-day  !  Then  came  the  chastenings  till  the 
man's  bones  were  made  to  ache,  and  he  was  full  of  misery. 
It  is  often  the  same  now.  I  acknowledge  I  was  brought 
to  God  by  agony  of  soul.  I  have  often  said  from  this  pulpit 
that  no  man  ever  steers  his  barque  towards  the  port  of  peace 
till  he  is  driven  there  by  stress  of  weather.  We  never  come 
to  Christ  till  we  feel  we  cannot  do  without  him.  We  must 
feel  our  poverty  before  we  shall  ever  come  and  beg  at  the 
door  of  his  mercy  for  help.  The  shades  are  the  same,  for 
the  same  imminence  of  danger  which  Elihu  spoke  of  comes 
upon  every  sinner's  consciousness,  more  or  less  before  he 
resorts  to  Jesus  for  refuge.  The  same  bitter  sense  of  sin 
comes  over  men  still,  and  the  same  wonder  at  their  own 
folly  in  having  continued  in  it.  The  same  darkness  still 
covers  the  sinner's  pathway,  and  the  same  inability  to  pro- 
cure the  light  for  himself;  the  same  need  of  light  from 
above,  the  same  need  of  help  from  him  who  is  mighty  to 
save.  If  any  of  you  are  passing  just  now  through  great 
darkness  of  soul,  because  you  have  not  yet  come  to  the  light, 
but  God  is  revealing  yourselves  to  yourselves,  be  comforted, 


164 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


for  the  same  dark  road  has  been  traversed  by  many  of  the 
saints  before  you,  and  it  is  a  safe  pathway,  leading  to  com- 
fort in  Jesus  Christ. 

VI.  But  now,  sixthly  and  very  briefly,  agaiu,  the  lights 
are  the  same,  even  as  the  shades  were  the  same.  You  will 
note  in  Elihu's  description,  that  the  great  source  of  the  light 
was  this  : — "  Deliver  him  from  going  down  to  the  pit,  for 
I  have  found  a  ransom."  There  is  not  a  gleam  of  light  in 
the  case  till  you  come  to  that  divine  word, — and  is  it  not  so 
now  ?  Did  you  ever  get  any  comfort  for  your  troubled  souls 
till  you  were  led  to  see  the  ransom  found  by  God  in  Jesus 
Christ  ?  Did  you  ever  know  the  value  of  the  ransom  for 
yourselves  till  God  spoke  it  home  to  you — "  Deliver  him 
from  going  down  to  the  pit,  for  /  have  found  a  ransom  ! " 
This  is  the  central  point  of  the  sinner's  hope — a  bleeding 
Saviour  paying  our  ransom  price  in  drops  of  blood,  the  dying 
Son  of  God  achieving  our  redemption  by  his  own  death. 
Oh,  dear  souls,  who  are  in  the  dark,  if  you  want  light,  there 
is  light  nowhere  but  at  the  cross.  Do  not  look  within  for 
light ;  the  only  benefit  of  looking  within  is  to  be  more  and 
more  convinced  that  all  is  as  dark  as  midnight  apart  from 
Jesus.  Look  within  if  you  want  to  despair,  but  if  you  wish 
for  hope  look  yonder  to  Calvary's  mountain,  where  the  Son 
of  God  lays  down  his  life  that  sinners  may  not  die.  Hear 
you  from  heaven  the  voice  which  saith,  "  I  have  found  a 
ransom."  That  is  the  only  reason  why  God  delivers  you, 
not  because  he  has  seen  any  good  thing  in  you,  but  because 
he  has  found  a  ransom  in  you.  Look  where  God  looks,  and 
your  comfort  will  begin. 

Then  this  precious  gospel  being  announced  to  the  sinner, 
the  comfort  of  it  enters  his  soul  in  the  exercise  of  prayer  : — 
"He  shall  pray  unto  God,  and  he  will  be  favorable  unto 
him. "  0  you  can  pray  when  you  get  to  the  cross ;  our 
prayers  before  we  saw  Christ,  are  poor  poor  things,  but  when 
we  get  to  Calvary,  and  see  the  utmost  ransom  paid,  and  the 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


165 


full  atonement  made,  then  prayer  becomes  the  utterance 
of  a  child  to  a  father,  and  we  feel  quite  sure  it  will  speed. 

Next,  it  appears,  that  the  soul  obtains  comfort  because 
God  gave  it  his  righteousness — "for  he  will  render  unto 
man  his  righteousness."  That  righteousness  which  God. 
expected  God  bestows  ;  that  righteousness  which  man  ought 
to  have  wrought  out  but  could  not,  Christ  works  out ;  and 
God  treats  the  believing  man  as  if  he  were  righteous,  making 
him  righteous  in  the  righteousness  of  Christ.  Here  is  another 
source  of  joy. 

And  then  the  man  being  led  to  a  full  confession  of  his 
sin  in  the  twenty-seventh  verse,  the  last  cloud  upon  his  spirit 
is  blown  away  and  he  is  at  perfect  peace.  God  was  gracious 
to  the  man  described  by  Elihu.  God  himself  became  his 
light  and  his  salvation,  and  he  came  forth  into  joy  and  lib- 
erty. There  is  nothing  more  full  of  freshness  and  surprise 
than  the  joy  of  a  new  convert.  Though  thousands  have  felt 
it,  yet  each  one  as  he  feels  it  is  himself  amazed.  I  did  really 
think  when  God  forgave  me  that  I  was  the  most  extraordi- 
nary instance  of  his  Sovereign  love  that  ever  lived,  and 'that 
I  should  be  bound  even  in  heaven  itself  to  tell  to  others  how 
God's  infinite  mercy  had  pardoned  in  my  case  the  biggest 
sinner  that  ever  was  forgiven.  Now,  every  saved  soul  is  led 
to  feel  just  that,  and  to  exult  and  rejoice,  and  magnify  the 
Lord  with  extreme  surprise,  because  of  his  goodness.  It 
seems  it  was  so  in  Job's  day,  and  it  is  so  now  ;  the  old  con- 
versions are  the  conversions  of  the  period  :  the  shades  are 
the  same  and  the  lights  are  the  same. 

VII.  And  last  .of  all,  which  is  the  seventh  point,  the 
results  are  the  same,  for  I  think  I  hardly  know  a  better 
description  of  the  result  of  regeneration  than  that  which  is 
given  in  the  twenty-fifth  verse  :  "'His  flesh  shall  be  fresher 
than  a  child's  :  he  shall  return  to  the  days  of  his  youth."  He 
who  was  an  old  wrinkled  man  in  sin,  and  looked  yet  older 
through  his  sorrow,  becomes  born  again,  starts  upon  a  new 


166 


AN  OLD-FASHIONED  CONVERSION. 


career  with  a  new  life  within  him  ;  the  health  which  had 
departed  from  his  soul  comes  back,  the  spring  of  spiritual 
juvenility  wells  up  in  him,  because  God  has  begotten  him 
afresh  and  made  him  a  new  creature  :  "  Old  things  have 
passed  away,  behold  all  things  are  become  new  !  " 

And  with  this  change  comes  back  joy.  See  the  twenty- 
sixth  verse  :  "  He  shall  see  his  face  with  joy ;  for  he  will 
render  unto  man  his  righteousness ; "  and  the  thirtieth 
verse  :  "  To  bring  back  his  soul  from  the  pit,  to  be  enlight- 
ened with  the  light  of  the  living."  So  that  the  new  spirit 
finds  itself  in  a  new  world,  in  which  it  goeth  forth  with  joy 
and  is  led  forth  with  peace  ;  the  mountains  and  the  hills 
break  forth  before  it  into  singing,  and  all  the  trees  of  the 
wood  do  clap  their  hands.  It  was  so  then ;  it  is  just  the 
same  now.  0  that  the  same  blessed  thing  may  happen  to 
many  here  present  at  this  time  ! 

I  have  endeavored  to  give  a  description  of  conversion, 
that  you  may  see  what  it  is  to  be  renewed  in  heart,  but  I 
shall  have  failed  of  my  intention  unless  many  a  knee  shall  be 
bent  to  God  with  this  prayer,  "  0  Spirit  of  God,  renew  my 
nature,  change  my  heart  :  make  my  flesh  to  be  fresher  than 
a  child's,  make  me  a  new  creature  in  Christ  Jesus."  Time  is 
passing  :  we  are  getting  now  almost  one-fourth  through 
another  year,  and  the  year  itself  will  soon  fly  away.  I  would 
speak  to  careless  and  thoughtless  ones  again,  and  ask  them 
will  it  never  be  time  to  think  upon  these  things  ?  Will  it 
never  be  time  to  consider  your  ways  ?  Will  it  never  be  time 
to  seek  unto  the  Lord  ?  Ye  know  not  how  near  ye  are  to 
the  grave's  brink.  Do  consider,  I  beseeqh  you,  and  remem- 
ber that  the  Lord  waiteth  to  be  gracious,  that  he  delighteth 
in  mercy,  and  if  you  seek  him  he  will  be  found  of  you  ;  and 
this  great  conversion  and  regeneration,  of  which  we  have 
spoken  at  such  length,  shall  be  yours,  and  you  shall  see  the 
face  of  God  with  joy  even  as  they  did  of  old.  The  Lord 
grant  it  to  you  for  the  Redeemer's  sake.  Amen. 


SERMON  IX. 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 

Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 
•  ington. 

"  Then  saith  he  unto  his  disciples,  The  harvest  truly  is  plenteous, 
but  the  laborers  are  few  ;  pray  ye  therefore  the  Lord  of  the  harvest, 
that  he  will  send  faithful  laborers  into  his  harvest.  And  when  he 
had  called  unto  him  his  twelve  disciples,  he  gave  them  power  against 
unclean  spirits,  to  cast  them  out,  and  to  heal  all  manner  of  sickness 
and  all  manner  of  disease." — Matthew  ix.  37,  38  ;  x.  1. 

The  circumstances  under  which  our  Lord  uttered  these 
words  are  instructive.  He  saw  the  people  thronging  him 
whenever  he  stood  up  to  preach,  and  he  perceived  that  the 
regular  instructors  of  the  people,  those  who  thought  that 
they  were  commissioned  to  teach  the  nation,  were  many  of 
them  leading  them  into  error,  and  the  rest  were  either 
shamefully  neglecting  their  duty,  or  were  performing  it 
without  heart,  zeal,  or  even  sincerity.  The  poor  people 
fainted,  and  were  scattered  abroad  like  sheep  without  a 
shepherd,  harassed  by  divers  fears  and  cast  down  by  many 
anxieties.  I  do  not  think  that  the  circumstances  under 
which  our  Lord  spake  these  words  have  passed  away,  but 
rather  that  we  are  living  under  precisely  the  same  condi- 
tions. I  would  not  willingly  be  guilty  of  uncharitableness, 
and  I  bless  God  that  there  are  many  left  in  our  land  who  are 


168 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


preaching  the  gospel  in  all  its  purity,  and  with  great  earnest- 
ness ;  but  still  it  is  lamentably  true  that  those  who  profess 
to  be  the  only  authorized  teachers  are,  a  very  great  number 
of  them,  leading  the  people  into  spiritual  bondage  by  reviv- 
ing the  old  popish  and  pagan  rites  ;  and  those  who  do  preach 
a  measure  of  truth,  too  often  do  not  preach  it  boldly  nor 
simply  as  they  should,  neither  is  there  enough  of  life  and 
earnest  concern  for  the  souls  of  men  among  them.  How 
many  even  of  our  own  churches,  where  we  think  the  truth 
is  held,  have  their  pulpits  so  ill-occupied  that  they  might 
almost  as  well  be  empty  as  filled  as  they  are,  for  there  is  a  J 
manifest  want  of  zeal,  love,  and  spiritual  power,  while  the 
clear  testimony  concerning  Jesus  is  sadly  lacking.  At  this 
time  the  people  of  many  towns  and  villages  are  shepherdless 
sheep,  for  whose  souls  no  man  careth  ;  they  are  fainting  and 
ready  to  die,  and  no  man  layeth  it  to  heart.  If  the  circum- 
stances be  the  same,  and  he  would  be  a  bold  man  who  should 
dare  to  dispute  it,  then  the  text  urgently  demands  our  prayer- 
ful attention. 

Our  Saviour  looked  upon  the  people  among  whom  he 
moved  in  a  manner  worthy  of  our  imitation.  He  was  a  man 
of  great  feeling,  he  was  "  moved  with  compassion,"  as  the 
Greek  word  has  it;  "his  bowels  yearned,"  his  sympathies 
were  awakened  ;  he  could  not  look  upon  a  mass  of  men  with 
an  indifferent  countenance,  his  inmost  soul  was  stirred  ;  but 
at  the  same  time  he  was  no  mere  enthusiast,  he  was  as  calmly 
practical  as  if  he  had  been  a  cool  calculator.  If  he  sighed, 
he  did  something  more  than  sigh  ;  he  proceeded  to  aid  those 
he  pitied.  He  had  practical  compassion  on  the  crowd,  and, 
therefore,  he  turned  to  his  disciples  and  said,  "Pray  ye  the 
Lord  of  the  harvest,  that  he  will  send  forth  laborers  into  his 
harvest."  He  did  not  go  about  among  the  masses  with  aii 
undiscerning  admiration  of  them  ;  I  do  not  hear  him  prais- 
ing them  as  "  the  finest  peasantry,"  or  "  the  sinew  of  the 
nation,"  as  some  will  do  ;  but  neither  do  we  sec  in  him  any  . 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


169 


trace  of  aversion  to  them,  as  though  he  felt  oat  of  place  in 
their  society.  He  was  often  saddened  by  their  follies,  and 
grieved  by  their  sins,  but  he  never  loathed  them  or  spoke 
contemptuously  of  them.  The  common  people  heard  him 
gladly,  because  they  saw  that  he  had  sympathy  with  them. 
Though  in  character  grandly  aristocratic,  he  was  in  manner 
and  life  profoundly  democratic ;  he  was  a  King,  and  yet 
"one  chosen  out  of  the  people,"  who  loved  them  with  all 
his  heart.  It  is  clear  also  that  he  never  grew  discouraged  in 
laboring  for  their  good  ;  you  never  hear  him  say  that  it  is 
useless  to  preach  to  the  multitude,  that  they  are  too  de- 
graded, too  priest-ridden,  or  too  ignorant.  No  discourage- 
ment ever  damped  his  ardor ;  he  persevered  till  his  work 
was  done.  A  brave,  glorious  heart  was  that  of  Jesus,  always 
melted  to  tenderness,  but,  at  the  same  time,  always  practical ; 
never  influenced  either  by  admiration,  or  aversion,  or  dis- 
couragement, so  as  to  cease  from  practical  methods  of  bet- 
tering the  condition  of  the  people  among  whom  he  dwelt. 
Take  note,  therefore,  that  we  are  about  to  speak  upon  a 
practical  matter,  and  I  trust  it  may  become  so  this  morning, 
that  many  may  be  influenced  to  pray  according  to  the  bid- 
ding of  their  Lord,  and  that  the  sincerity  of  their  prayers 
may  be  proved  by  their  subsequent  endeavors  to  obtain  their 
petitions. 

At  the  outset,  this  morning,  we  shall  see  how  our  Lord 
states  the  case, — "The  harvest  is  plenteous;"  secondly, 
that  he  indicates  the  service  needed — more  "laborers"  were 
required  to  gather  in  the  harvest ;  thirdly,  that  he  directs  us 
how  to  obtain  the  supply  of  laborers, — by  prayer ;  and 
fourthly,  he  answers  their  prayers  in  a  remarkable  ma?mer. 

I.  First,  our  Lord  states  the  case  of  men  of  his  time 
and  ours.  The  people  who  gathered  around  him  he  likens 
to  harvest  fields  :  wherein  lay  the  similarity  ? 

First,  he  thought  of  the  great  multitudes.  The  thought 
of  multitudes  rises  naturally  from  the  sight  of  a  harvest  field, 
8 


170 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


and  when  the  crop  is  plenteous  the  idea  of  multitude  forces 
itself  upon  you  at  once.  You  cannot  count  the  ears  of  corn, 
neither  will  you  be  able  to  count  the  sons  of  men.  I  suppose 
our  Saviour  alluded  first  of  all  to  the  crowds  around  him- 
self, but  his  mind  being  much  more  capacious  than  ours,  he 
remembered  all  the  thousands  of  Israel ;  nay,  methinks  he 
could  not  have  restricted  his  heart  to  the  little  country  of 
Israel,  he  glanced  across  the  seas  and  beyond  the  moun- 
tains to  the  myriads  of  mankind  swarming  upon  this  globe. 
Brethren,  it  crushes  one  to  think  of  the  millions  of  our 
species.  Nobody  yet  has  been  able  to  obtain  an  idea  of  the 
vast  extent  of  this  one  city  of  London  ;  you  shall  traverse 
it  from  end  to  end  as  long  as  you  will,  and  you  shall  study 
its  statistics,  but  you  have  no  conception  what  the  popula- 
tion of  London  is,  and  you  never  will  have, — the  mass  is  too 
great.  But  what  is  London  compared  with  our  nation,  and 
with  the  millions  that  speak  our  mother  tongue  all  over 
the  world  ?  Yet  even  these  are  but  a  small  portion  of  the 
innumerable  host.  We  never  shall  be  able  to  obtain  even 
a  fringe  of  a  conception  of  China  with  its  teeming  millions, 
or  of  that  other  populous  nation  which  owns  our  sceptre, 
Hindostan.  Multitudes  are  in  the  valley  of  existence  ;  as  the 
drops  from  the  rain  cloud  and  as  the  leaves  upon  the  forest 
trees  ;  such  are  the  sons  of  men.  You  might  as  well  tell  the 
stars  in  the  heavens  or  the  waves  of  the  sea  as  hope  to  reckon 
the  myriads  which  have  sprung  from  the  loins  of  Adam.  All 
these  must  be  reaped  and  gathered  into  the  gospel  garner,  or 
they  must  perish  ;  all  these  must  have  laborers  sent  of  God 
to  gather  them  in,  or  they  will  miss  a  blissful  immortality. 
Well  did  our  Saviour  compare  the  myriads  of  the  sons  of  men 
with  the  multitude  of  the  ears  of  corn  in  the  harvest  field. 

Our  Lord  intended  to  set  forth  a  second  idea,  which 
dwelt,  perhaps,  still  more  prominently  in  his  mind,  and  it 
was  that  of  value.  He  did  not  speak  of  blades  of  grass, 
mark  you,. in  his  comparison,  but  of  ears  of  corn  ;  lie  did  not 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


171 


talk  of  tares  as  lie  did  in  other  parables  ;  he  did  not  speak  of 
loose  pebbles  by  the  sea  coast,  or  worthless  grains  of  sand ; 
but  he  compared  the  multitude  to  wheat,  and  what  is  there 
more  precious  than  corn  ?  Is  it  not  to  us  most  valuable, 
because  it  is  the  sustenance  of  our  life  ?  Do  we  not  for  this 
cause  gather  it  in  with  shoutings  ?  Harvest-home  is  always 
gladsome,  because  we  prize  its  sheaves.  Much  toil  and  care 
have  been  spent  to  secure  the  production  of  the  harvest,  and 
when  the  yellow  fields  wave  before  our  eyes  we  cannot  despise 
them ;  we  know  that  they  are  more  precious  than  anything 
else  that  cometh  up  out  of  the  earth.  So  it  is  to  God,  and  to 
Jesus,  God's  Son.  He  did  not  look  upon  men  of  any  sort  as 
things  to  be  despised  ;  he  would  not  have  the  least  among 
them  treated  as  chattels  nor  regarded  with  contempt.  He 
knew  the  wisdom  which  was  displayed  in  the  creation  of  the 
fabric  of  their  bodies  and  in  the  faculties  of  their  souls.  He 
knew  how  God  takes  delight  in  men,  and  how  good  men, 
sanctified  men,  give  to  God's  heart  a  joy  like  the  joy  of 
harvest,  and  how  men  who  have  gone  astray,  when  they  are 
restored,  make  the  great  Father's  heart  to  leap  within  him 
with  a  joy  which  angels  cannot  give.  Of  all  creatures  under 
heaven,  the  most  precious  thing  to  God  is  man.  He  cares 
nothing  for  gems  of  the  mine  or  pearls  of  the  sea,  but  men 
he' values  so  much  that  he  gave  his  only-begotten  Son  to 
bleed  and  die^hat  they  might  not  perish,  but  have  everlast- 
ing life.  The  souls  of  the  multitude  are  precious  in  the  sight 
of  the  Lord,  even  as  corn  is  precious  to  the  husbandman. 

But  when  the  Lord  spake  of  them  as  a  harvest,  he  had 
before  his  mind  the  idea  of  danger  to  them.  The  harvest  in 
our  own  country  is  just  now  ripe  and  ready  for  the  sickle  ;  but 
suppose  the  owner  of  some  large  estate  should  walk  through 
his  broad  acres  and  should  say,  "  I  have  a  great  harvest — 
look  at  those  far-reaching  fields  :  but  the  country  has  become 
depopulated,  the  people  have  emigrated,  and  I  have  no  labor- 
ers.   There  are  one  or  two  yonder,  they  are  reaping  with  all 


172 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


their  might,  they  make  long  days,  and  they  toil  till  they 
faint ;  but  over  yonder  there  are  vast  ranges  of  my  farm 
unreaped,  and  I  have  not  a  sickle  to  thrust  in.  The  corn  is 
being  wasted,  and  it  grieves  me  sorely.  See  how  the  birds 
are  gathering  in  troops  to  prey  upon  the  precious  ears  ! 
Meanwhile  the  season  is  far  advanced,  the  autumn  damps 
are  already  upon  us,  and  the  chill,  frosty  nights  which  are 
winter's  vanguard  are  on  their  way.  Mildew  is  spoiling  the 
grain,  and  what  remains  sound  will  shell  out  upon  the 
ground,  or  swell  with  the  moisture  and  become  of  no  ser- 
vice." Behold  in  this  picture  the  Redeemer.  He  looks 
upon  the  world  to-day,  and  he  says  within  himself,  "  All 
these  multitudes  of  precious  souls  will  be  lost,  for  there  are 
so  few  reapers  to  gather  them  in.  Here  and  there  are  men 
who,  with  prodigious  energy,  are  reaping  all  they  can,  and 
all  but  fainting  as  they  reap,  and  I  am  with  them,  and 
blessed  sheaves  are  taken  home,  but  what  are  these  among 
so  many  ? "  Look,  brethren,  can  your  eye  see  it  ?  Can 
even  an  eagle's  wing  fly  over  the  vast  fields,  unreaped  plains, 
without  growing  weary  in  the  flight  ?  There  are  the  precious 
ears,  they  decay,  they  rot,  they  perish,  they  are  ruined,  to 
the  loss  of  God  and  to  their  own  eternal  injury  ;  and  it 
grieves  the  Great  Husbandman  that  it  should  be  so.  That' 
is  still  the  case  to-day,  and  it  ought  to  grieve  us  that  it  should 
be  so,  for  his  sake,  and  for  the  sake  of  our  fellow  men.  A 
multitude  of  precious  souls  are  perishing,  and  this  the  Saviour 
lamented. 

The  Saviour  had  yet  another  thought,  namely,  that  the 
masses  were  accessible,  for  he  used  the  same  expression  when 
the  people  came  streaming  out  of  Samaria  to  the  well  to  hear 
him,  drawn  out  by  curiosity  created  by  the  woman's  story. 
He  said  to  his  disciples,  "Lift  up  now  your  eyes,  behold  the 
fields  are  white  already  to  the  harvest."  Now,  when  people 
are  ready  to  hear  the  word,  then  it  is  that  the  fields  are  ripe ; 
and  our  Lord  meant  that  as  the  wheat  ears  do  not  oppose  the 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


173 


sickle,  stand  there,  and  a  man  has  but  to  enter  into  the  field, 
and  the  result  will  surely  follow,  so  there  are  times  when 
nothing  is  wanted  but  to  preach  the  gospel,  and  the  souls 
which  otherwise  would  perish,  will  surely  be  in-gathered. 
I  do  not  believe,  my  brethren,  that  at  any  time  the  world 
has  had  a  dull  ear  to  the  gospel.  Who  have  gathered  the 
crowds  ?  Such  men  as  Augustine  and  Chrysostom.  And 
what  was  their  preaching  but  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ. 
Who  have  gathered  them  ?  Such  men  as  John  Huss,  and 
Jerome,  and  Luther,  and  Calvin,  and  the  like,  about  whom 
there  was  ever  a  sweet  savor  of  Christ.  Who  have  gathered 
them  in  this  land  ?  Who  but  our  Wyclilfe  and  our  Knox  ? 
Who  gathered  them  in  later  days  but  our  Whitefield  and  our 
Wesley,  men  who  spoke  the  common  language  of  the  people, 
and  who  had  no  theme  but  Jesus  crucified.  They  will  not 
go  to  hear  your  philosophies,  they  leave  you  and  your  philos- 
ophies to  the  spiders  and  the  dry-rot ;  but  preach  Jesus,  and 
his  precious  blood,  and  tell  men  that  whosoever  believeth  in 
Christ  shall  be  saved,  and  they  will  hear  you  gladly.  I  heard 
but  last  week  from  a  missionary  who  spends  nights  in  work- 
ing for  his  Lord  in  gin-palaces  and  the  lowest  resorts  of  the 
people,  that  he  has  scarcely  ever  met  with  an  insult ;  the 
people  received  his  tracts,  and  thanked  him  for  his  kindly 
words.  I  find  it  continually  asserted  by  our  city  missionaries 
and  those  who  visit  cab  ranks,  or  omnibus  yards,  or  work 
among  other  public  servants,  that  in  general  there  is  a  will- 
ing attention  to  the  gospel.  The  fields  stand  ready  to  reap 
them,  but  there  are  not  reapers  enough  ;  the  grain  perishes 
for  want  of  laborers.  The  people  are  accessible.  What 
country  is  there  where  the  gospel  cannot  be  preached  ?  Fast 
closed  was  China,  but  you  may  go  throughout  the  length  and 
breadth  of  the  land  and  talk  of  Christ,  if  ye  will.  Japan  is 
open  to  you,  and  Africa  has  laid  bare  her  central  secret; 
Spain,  fast  shut  as  with  a  seal,  is  this  day  set  free,  and  Italy 
rejoices  in  the  same  liberty.    All  the  world  lies  before  the 


174 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


reapers  of  the  Most  High,  but  where  are  they  ?  "  The  har- 
vest truly  is  plenteous,  but  the  laborers  are  few." 

The  idea  of  immediate  need  is  contained  in  the  figure,  for 
the  reaping  of  the  harvest  is  to  a  considerable  extent  with 
the  farmer  a  matter  of  now  or  never.  "  Ah,"  says  he,  "if 
I  could  postpone  the  harvest,  if  I  could  let  it  be  gathered 
in  by  slow  degrees,  if  we  could  work  on  till  the  harvest  moon 
has  gone,  and  then  through  November  and  December  till 
winter  closes  the  year,  then  the  scantiness  of  laborers  would 
be  a  small  evil,  but  there  is  a  limited  time  in  which  the  wheat 
can  be  safely  housed,  and  it  must  be  got  in  ere  winter  begins, 
or  it  is  lost  to  us."  Ah,  my  brethren,  there  is  no  time  for 
us  to  waste  in  the  salvation  of  the  sons  of  men.  They  will 
not  live  forever  ;  yon  grey  head  will  not  tarry  till  you  have 
told  him  the  gospel,  if  you  postpone  the  good  news  for  the 
next  ten  years.  We  speak  of  what  we  hope  may  be  accom- 
plished for  our  race  in  half  a  century,  but  this  generation 
will  be  buried  ere  that  time.  Ye  must  reap  yon  harvest 
at  once,  or  it  will  be  destroyed  ;  it  must  be  ingathered 
speedily,  or  it  will  perish.  To-day,  to-day,  to-day,  the  im- 
perative necessities  of  manhood  appeal  to  the  benevolence  of 
Christians.  To-day  the  sure  destruction  of  the  unbeliever 
speaks  with  pleading  voice  to  the  humanity  of  every  quick- 
ened heart.  "  We  are  perishing,  will  you  let  us  perish  ? 
You  can  only  help  us  by  bringing  us  the  gospel  now  ;  will 
you  delay  ?  " 

Thus  we  have  indicated  the  design  of  the  Master  in  select- 
ing the  figure  of  a  harvest. 

II.  And  now,  secondly,  I  desire  to  point  out  to  you  the 
service  needed.  The  world  being  represented  as  a  harvest, 
the  need  was  for  "laborers."  I  have  never  seen  in  any  com- 
mentary or  sermon  I  have  yet  met  with,  any  working  out  of 
the  metaphor  of  laborers  in  the  harvest  field,  and  yet  the 
meaning  lies  upon  the  very  surface — I  will  call  your  attention 
to  it  in  a  moment,  when  I  have  noticed,  first,  that  our 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


175 


Saviour  tells  us  that  laborers  are  wanted.  There  are  certain 
persons  in  the  world  who  do  not  believe  in  instrumentalities, 
and  habitually  depreciate  them.  Our  Saviour  was  not  of 
their  mind.  He  did  not  say,  "The  harvest  truly  is  plente- 
ous, and  the  laborers  are  few,  but  that  matters  not,  God  can 
bless  a  few,  and  make  them  accomplish  as  much  as  many." 
He  believed  in  his  Father's  omnipotence,  but  he  also  believed 
that  the  Lord  would  work  by  means,  and  that  many  laborers 
were  required  to  gather  in  a  plenteous  harvest,  and  therefore 
he  told  us  to  pray  for  them.  He  believed  in  results  being 
proportionate  to  means  used,  and  he  therefore  bade  us  go  to 
the  root  of  the  matter  practically.  Neither  did  our  Lord 
say,  "The  laborers  are  few,  therefore  pray  God  to  do  the 
work.  He  can  do  it  alone,  and  has  no  need  of  men.  You 
think  too  much  of  men  ;  your  one-man  ministry  ought  to  be 
put  away."  No,  Jesus  did  not  talk  so,  we  do  not  see  any 
trace  of  such  sentiments  in  our  Saviour's  teaching :  our  Mas- 
ter never  made  too  much  of  men,  but  he  made  a  very  great 
deal  of  men  anointed  of  the  Spirit  and  sent  to  preach  ;  in 
fact  he  taught  us  to  pray  for  them  ;  and  the  very  last  thing 
he  did  for  us  when  he  went  to  heaven  was  to  give  us  men,  for 
it  is 'written,  "He  received  gifts  for  men  :  and  gave  some 
apostles,  some  evangelists,  some  pastors  and  teachers."  If 
we  despise  what  Christ  evidently  prizes  as  his  ascension  gift, 
we  may  fancy  we  are  honoring  God,  but  we  shall  grieve 
his  Spirit.  He  would  have  us  attach  great  importance  to 
the  instrumentality.  He  bids  us  know  that  though  God 
could  reap  his  harvest  without  men,  he  will  not  do  it. 
Could  he  not  bring  forth  a  spiritual  reaping  machine  ? 
Modern  invention  has  done  this  for  the  farmer,  and  the 
same  idea  could  be  carried  out  in  spiritual  things,  and  so 
thousands  would  be  converted  in  an  hour  without  human 
agency.  But  the  Lord  asks  for  no  such  inventions,  he  does 
not  direct  us  to  ask  for  spiritual  reaping  machines,  but  to 
pray  the  Master  to  send  laborers  into  the  harvest. 


176 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


But  what  kind  of  men  does  the  Master  mean  to  use  ? 
This  is  indicated  in  the  text.  First,  they  must  be  laborers. 
The  man  who  does  not  make  hard  work  of  his  ministry  will 
find  it  very  hard  work  to  answer  for  his  idleness  at  the  last 
great  day.  A  gentleman  who  wants  an  easy  life  should  never 
think  of  occupying  the  Christian  pulpit,  he  is  out  of  place 
there,  and  when  he  gets  there  the  only  advice  I  can  give  him 
is  to  get  out  of  it  as  soon  as  possible  ;  and  if  he  will  not 
leave  the  position  voluntarily,  I  call  to  mind  the  language  of 
Jehu  concerning  Jezebel,  "  Fling  her  down,"  and  think  the 
advice  applicable  to  a  lazy  minister.  An  idler  has  no  right 
yi  the  pulpit.  ,He  is  an  instrument  of  Satan  in  damning  the 
souls  of  men.  The  ministry  demands  brain  labor ;  the 
preacher  must  throw  his  thought  into  his  teaching,  and  read 
and  study  to  keep  his  mind  in  good  trim.  He  must  not 
weary  the  people  by  telling  them  the  truth  in  a  stale,  unprof- 
itable manner,  with  nothing  fresh  from  his  own  soul 
to  give  force  tojt.  Above  all,  he  must  put  heart  work  into 
his  preaching.  He  must  feel  what  he  preaches  :  it  must 
never  be  with  him  an  easy  thing  to  deliver  a  sermon,  he  must 
feel  as  if  he  could  preach  his  very  life  away  ere  the  sermon  is 
done.  There  must  be  soul  work  in  it,  the  entire  man  must 
be  stirred  up  to  effort,  the  whole  nature  that  God  has  en- 
dowed him  with  must  be  concentrated  with  all  its  vigor  upon 
the  work  in  hand.  Such  men  we  want.  To  stand  and  drone 
out  a  sermon  in  a  kind  of  articulate  snoring  to  a  people  who 
are  somewhat  between  awake  and  asleep  must  be  wretched 
work.  I  wonder  what  kind  of  excuse  will  be  given  by  some 
men  at  last  for  having  habitually  done  this.  To  promulgate 
a  dry  creed,  and  go  over  certain  doctrines,  and  expound  and 
enforce  them  logically,  but  never  to  deal  with  men's  con- 
sciences, never  to  upbraid  them  for  their  sins,  never  to  tell 
them  of  their  danger,  never  to  invite  them  to  a  Saviour  with 
tears  and  entreaties  !  What  a  powerless  work  is  this  !  What 
will  become  of  such  preachers  ?   God  have  mercy  upon  them ! 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


177 


We  want  laborers  not  loiterers.  We  need  men  on  fire,  and  I 
beseech  you  ask  God  to  send  them.  The  harvest  never  can 
be  reaped  by  men  who  will  nofc  labor ;  they  must  off  with 
their  coats  and  go  at  it  in  their  shirt-sleeves ;  I  mean  they 
must  doff  their  dignities  and  get  to  Christ's  work  as  if  they 
meant  it,  like  real  harvest  men.  They  must  sweat  at  their 
work,  for  nothing  in  the  harvest  field  can  be  done  without 
the  sweat  of  the  face,  nor  in  the  pulpit  without  the  sweat  of 
the  soul. 

But  what  kind  of  laborers  are  required  ?  First,  they 
must  be  men  ivho  will  go  doivn  into  the  wheat.  You  cannot 
reap  wheat  by  standing  a  dozen  yards  off  and  beckoning  to  it : 
you  must  go  up  close  to  the  standing  stalks ;  every  reaper 
knows  that.  And  you  cannot  move  people's  hearts,  and 
bring  men  to  Christ,  by  imagining  yourself  to  be  a  superior 
being,  who  condescends  wonderfully  when  he  shakes  hands 
with  a  poor  man.  There  is  a  very  genteel  order  of  preaching 
which  is  as  ridiculous  as  reaping  with  a  lady's  ivory-handled 
pocket  knife,  with  kid  gloves  on  ;  and  I  do  not  believe  in 
God's  ever  blessing  it.  Get  among  the  wheat  like  men  in 
earnest  !  God's  servants  ought  to  feel  that  they  are  one  with 
the  people  ;  whoever  they  are  they  should  love  them,  claim 
kinship  with  them,  feel  glad  to  see  them  and  look  them  in 
the  face  and  say,  "  brother."  Every  man  is  a  brother  of 
mine  ;  he  may  be  a  very  bad  one,  but  for  all  that  I  love  him, 
and  long  to  bring  him  to  J esus.  Christ's  reapers  must  get 
among  the  wheat. 

Now,  see  what  the  laborer  brings  with  him.  It  is  a 
sickle.  His  communications  with  the  corn  are  sharp  and 
cutting.  He  cuts  right  through,  cuts  the  corn  down,  and 
casts  it  on  the  ground.  The  man  whom  God  means  to  be  a 
laborer  in  his  harvest  must  not  come  with  soft  and  delicate 
words,  and  flattering  doctrines  concerning  the  dignity  of 
human  nature,  and  the  excellence  of  self-help,  and  of  earn- 
est endeavors  to  rectify  our  lapsed  condition,  and  the  like. 
8* 


178 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


Sucli  mealy- mouthedness  may  God  curse,  for  it  is  the  curse 
of  this  age.  The  honest  preacher  calls  a  sin  a  sin,  and  a 
spade  a  spade,  and  says  to  men,  "You  are  ruining  your- 
selves ;  while  you  reject  Christ  you  are  living  on  the  borders 
of  hell,  and  ere  long  you  will  be  lost  to  all  eternity.  There 
shall  be  no  mincing  the  matter,  you  must  escape  from  the 
wrath  to  come  by  faith  in  Jesus,  or  be  driven  forever  from 
God's  presence,  and  from  all  hope  of  joy."  The  preacher 
must  make  his  sermons  cut.  .  He  is  not  to  file  off  the  edge 
of  his  scythe  for  fear  it  should  hurt  somebody.  No,  my 
hearers,  we  mean  to  hurt  you ;  our  sickle  is  made  on  pur- 
pose to  cut.  The  gospel  is  intended  to  wound  the  con- 
science, and  go  right  through  the  heart,  with  the  design  of 
separating  the  soul  from  sin  and  self,  as  the  corn  is  divided 
from  the  soil.  Our  object  is  to  cut  the  sinner  right  down, 
for  all  the  comeliness  of  the  flesh  must  be  slain,  all  his  glory, 
all  his  excellence  must  be  withered,  and  the  man  must  be  as 
one  dead  ere  he  can  be  saved.  Ministers  who  do  not  aim  to 
cut  deep  are  not  worth  their  salt.  God  never  sent  the  man 
who  never  troubles  men's  consciences.  Such  a  man  may  be 
an  ass  treading  down  the  corn,  but  a  reaper  he  certainly 
is  not.  We  want  faithful  ministers  ;  pray  God  to  send 
them.  Ask  him  to  give  us  men  who  will  preach  the  whole 
truth,  who  will  not  be  afraid  of  certain  humbling  doctrines, 
but  will  bring  out,  for  instance,  the  doctrine  of  election,  and 
not  be  ashamed,  who  will  tell  men  that  salvation  is  of  the 
Lord,  and  will  not  go  about  to  please  them  by  letting  them 
have  a  finger  in  salvation,  as  though  they  were  to  share  in 
the  glory  of  it.  Oh  for  laborers  who  can  use  sharp  cutting 
sickles  upon  ungodly  hearts  ! 

But  then  a  laborer  has  only  begun  when  he  cuts  the 
corn  :  much  more  is  wanted.  As  he  cuts,  he  lets  the  corn 
fall  on  to  his  arm,  and  then  he  lays  it  along  in  rows,  but 
afterwards  he  hinds  it  together  and  makes  it  into  bundles 
that  it  may  be  ingathered,    So  the  laborer  whom  God  sends 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


179 


into  the  field  must  be  a  gathering  laborer  ;  he  must  be  one 
who  brings  God's  people  together,  who  comforts  those  that 
mourn,  and  picks  up  from  the  earth  those  who  are  cut  down 
by  the  sharp  sickle  of  conviction.  He  must  bind  the  saints 
together,  edifying  them  in  their  most  holy  faith.  Alas,  how 
many  have  been  scatterers,  rending  churches  to  pieces. 
Pray  ye  the  Lord  of  the  harvest  to  give  his  church  binders 
who  can,  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  unite  men's 
hearts ! 

Remember  also  that  the  laborer's  work  is  never  done  iu 
harvest  time  till  he  sees  the  corn  housed, — until  it  is  made 
into  a  stack  or  put  into  a  barn,  his  toil  is  not  over  ;  and  the 
Christian  minister,  if  God  has  truly  anointed  him  to  his  work, 
never  leaves  caring  for  souls  till  they  get  to  heaven.  He  is 
like  Mr.  Greatheart,  with  Christiana  and  Mercy,  and  the 
children  ;  he  goes  with  them  from  the  City  of  Destruction, 
right  up  to  the  Eiver  Jordan  ;  and  if  he  could  he  would 
go  through  the  river  with  them.  ft  is  his  business  to  march 
in  front  with  his  shield,  to  meet  the  dragons  and  giants  with 
his  sword,  and  protect  the  little  ones.  It  is  his  to  be  tender 
to  them  as  a  shepherd  with  the  lambs  and  a  nurse  with  her 
children,  for  he  longs  to  present  them  at  the  last  to  his  Mas- 
ter and  say,  "  Here  am  I,  and  the  children  that  thou  hast 
given  me."  Brother  minister,  ours  is  a  great  work,  and 
it  never  ceases  from  the  first  moment  when  our  sickle  touches 
the  conscience  and  wounds  it,  to  the  last  moment  when  we 
are  enabled  to  present  our  people  before  the  Lord,  saved  for 
ever.  The  church  wants  men  sent  of  the  Holy  Ghost  who 
can  do  all  this,  by  God's  help  ;  for  though  the  Lord  worketh 
all  things,  he  does  it  by  men,  and  men  are  wanted  every- 
where that  the  work  may  be  accomplished. 

Thus  have  we  described  the  service  required. 

III.  The  third  thing  is  our  Lord  directed  his  disciples 
how  to  obtain  A  supplt.  He  bids  them  pray  for  such  men. 
Every  word  here  is  instructive.    "  Py&j  ye."    Brethren,  do 


180 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


you  ever  pray  God  to  send  such  workers  into  his  vineyard  ? 
How  long  since  you  heard  that  prayer  prayed,  except  from 
this  pulpit  ?  Pray  ye,  every  one  of  you.  Are  you  in  the] 
habit  of  doing  so  every  morning  and  night  ?  Why  is  there 
such  a  dearth  of  really  warm-hearted,  loving,  earnest  evan- 
gelists in  England  ?  It  is  because  they  are  not  asked  for. ' 
God  will  not  give  them  to  us  if  we  do  not  ask  for  them.  If 
there  is  one  thing  noticeable  in  this  church  it  is  our  con- 
tinual prayer  that  God  may  be  pleased  to  raise  up  among 
us  men  who  will  work  for  him,  and  he  has  done  it,  and 
he  will  do  it  if  we  continue  to  pray  for  it.  But  if  you  do 
not  pray  that  God  would  send  forth  the  laborers,  and  the 
laborers  do  not  come,  who  is  to  blame  ?    "  Pray  ye." 

"  Pray  ye  therefore"  he  says  as  if  the  very  fact  that  there 
are  so  many  precious  souls  perishing  should  be  our  object  for 
praying.  "  Lord,  it  is  not  a  few  score  that  are  left  untaught 
and  unsaved,  but  millions  in  our  own  land,  and  hundreds  of 
millions  in  other  lands  ;  therefore,  Lord,  we  do  pray  thee ! 
send  forth  laborers." 

We  are  to  pray  to  the  Lord,  for  it  is  the  Lord's  business. 
Only  the  Lord  can  send  us  the  right  men.  He  has  a  right 
to  send  whom  he  pleases,  for  it  is  his  own  harvest,  and  a 
man  may  employ  whom  he  wills  in  his  own  field.  It  would 
be  all  in  vain  to  appeal  to  anybody  else.  It  is  of  no  use 
to  appeal  to  bishops  to  find  us  laborers.  God  alone  has  the 
making  of  ministers,  and  the  raising  up  of  true  workers,  and 
therefore  the  petition  must  be  addressed  to  him.  "  Pray  ye 
therefore  the  Lord  of  the  harvest."  The  Lord's  prayer,  in 
its  first  three  petitions,  contains  this  prayer  :  "  Our  Father 
which  art  in  heaven,  hallowed  be  thy  name.  Thy  kingdom 
come,  thy  will  be  done,  in  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven."  Does 
not  that  mean,  "  Lord,  send  forth  men  who  may  teach  this 
world  to  hallow  thy  name,  that  they  through  thy  Spirit's 
power  may  be  the  means  of  making  thy  kingdom  come,  and 
causing  thy  will  to  be  done  in  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven,"  We 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


181 


ought  to  pray  continually  to  the  great  Lord  of  the  harvest  for 
a  supply  of  earnest  laborers. 

And  do  you  notice  the  expression  used  here,  "  that  he 
would  send  forth  laborers."  Kow  the  Greek  is  much  more 
forcible,  it  is  that  he  would  push  them  forward,  and  thrust 
them  out :  it  is  the  same  word  which  is  used  for  the  expulsion 
of  a -devil  from  a  man  possessed.  It  takes  great  power  to 
drive  a  devil  out,  it  will  need  equal  power  from  God  to  drive 
a  minister  out  to  his  work.  I  always  say  to  young  fellows 
who  consult  me  about  the  ministry,  "  Don't  be  a  minister  if 
you  can  help  it ;  "  because,  if  the  man  can  help  it,  God  never 
called  him,  but  if  he  cannot  help  it,  and  he  must  preach  or 
die,  then  he  is  the  man.  May  the  Lord  push  men  out,  thrust 
them  out,  drive  them  out,  and  compel  them  to  preach  the 
gospel ;  for  unless  they  preach  by  a  divine  compulsion,  there 
will  be  no  spiritual  compulsion  in  their  ministry  upon  the 
hearts  of  others.  "Pray  ye  therefore  the  Lord  of  the  har- 
vest, that  he  would  thrust  out  laborers  into  his  harvest." 

And  do  notice,  beloved,  that  our  Lord  said,  "into  Ms 
harvest."  I  like  that,  because  the  harvest  is  not  ours.  If 
that  harvest  shall  not  perish,  it  is  our  heavenly  Fathers 
harvest  that  perishes.  This  makes  it  weigh  upon  my  soul. 
If  they  told  me  that  the  harvest  of  some  harsh,  overbearing 
tyrant  was  perishing,  I  might  say,  "  Let  it  !  If  he  had 
it,  what  good  would  it  be  to  him  or  anybody  else  ?  He 
grinds  the  faces  of  the  poor  ;  who  wants  to  see  him  rich  ?  " 
But  when  it  is  our  gracious  God,  our  blessed  loving  Father, 
one  cannot  bear  the  thought,  and  yet  Jesus  puts  it  before  us 
that  it  is  God's  harvest  which  is  perishing  for  want  of  reap- 
ing. Suppose  an  angel  should  take  you  upon  his  wing  and 
poise  you  in  mid-space  some  hundreds  of  miles  above  the  earth, 
where  you  could  look  down  on  the  globe  with  strengthened 
eyesight ;  suppose  you  rested  there  and  the  world  revolved 
before  you  in  twenty-four  hours,  the  sunlight  gradually 
coming  upon  all  portions  of  it,  and  suppose  that  with  the 


182 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


sunlight  there  should  be  rendered  visible  certain  colors 
which  would  mark  where  there  was  grace,  where  there  was 
idolatry,  where  there  was  atheism,  where  there  was  popery  : 
you  would  grieve  to  see  only  here  and  there  upon  our  globe, 
like  little  drops  of  dew,  bright  marks  of  the  grace  of  God, 
but  various  shades  of  darkness  would  show  you  that  the 
whole  world  lieth  in  the  Wicked  One  still.  And  if  the 
vision  changed,  and  you  saw  the  two  hemispheres  spread  out 
like  a  map  and  transformed  into  a  corn  field  with  corn  all 
white  for  the  harvest  :  how  sad  would  you  be  to  see  here  and 
there  men  reaping  their  little  patches,  doing  the  best  they 
can,  but  the  great  mass  of  the  corn  untouched  by  the  sickle. 
You  would  see  leagues  of  land  where  never  an  ear  was 
reaped,  that  we  know  of,  from  the  foundation  of  the  world. 
You  would  be  grieved  to  think  that  God's  corn  is  spoiling, 
men  whom  he  has  made  in  his  own  image,  and  made  for 
immortality,  perishing  for  lack  of  the  gospel.  "  Pray  ye," 
that  is  the  stress  of  the  whole  text — "  Pray  ye  therefore  the 
Lord  of  the  harvest,  that  he  would  thrust  forth  laborers  into 
his  harvest,"  that  these  fields  may  not  rot  before  our  eyes. 

Will  ye  pray  it,  my  brethren  ?  This  text  is  laid  on 
my  heart ;  it  lies  more  on  my  heart  than  any  other  in  the 
Bible  ;  it  is  one  that  haunts  me  perpetually,  and  has  done 
for  many  years.  What  can  one  voice,  one  tongue  do  ? 
Therefore  it  is  that  we  instituted  the  College,  that  men 
might  be  instructed  in  the  way  of  God  more  perfectly,  and 
you,  my  beloved  people,  have  helped  me  these  many  years, 
for  which  I  thank  you,  thank  you  lovingly,  and  with  all 
my  heart.  You  have  never  ceased  from  that  best  of  works, 
and  therefore,  you  as  a  church,  can  honestly  pray,  because 
you  work  as  well  as  pray.  Some  churches  cannot  do  so, 
they  despise  the  teaching  of  a  man  of  utterance,  so  that 
he  may  read  the  Scriptures  in  the  original  tongue,  and 
speak  his  own  language  correctly ;  but  you  have  taken  ten- 
derly and  generously  to  the  work,  and  God  has  blessed  you ; 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


183 


and  at  this  very  moment  some  three  hundred  of  your  sons, 
nursed  at  your  knees,  are  preaching  the  selfsame  gospel 
which  we  are  preaching  here,  for  which  let  God  be  praised. 
While  we  give  let  us  pray,  and  when  we  have  prayed,  let 
us  give  ;  that  God  may  send  forth  laborers  into  his  harvest. 

IV.  The  last  point  is  this  :  the  Lord  Jesus  heard 
their  prayers,  he  did  send  forth  laborers.  I  feel  vexed 
with  the  fellow  who  chopped  the  Bible  up  into  chapters  ; 
I  forget  his  name  just  now,  and  I  am  sure  it  is  not  worth 
recollecting.  I  have  heard  that  he  did  the  most  of  his 
carving  of  the  New  Testament  between  London  and  Paris, 
and  rough  work  he  made  of  it.  Surely  he  was  chaptering 
the  gospel  of  Matthew  while  he  was  crossing  the  Channel,  for 
he  has  divided  it  in  such  queer  places.  He  has  chopped 
this  passage  in  two.  "  Pray  ye  therefore  the  Lord  of  the 
harvest,  that  he  will  send  forth  laborers  into  his  harvest." 
Down  comes  the  meat  axe,  right  across  a  bone.  Let  us  put 
the  bones  together,  and  read  what  is  next.  "  And  when 
he  had  called  unto  him  his  twelve  disciples,  he  gave  them 
power  against  unclean  spirits,  to  cast  them  out."  It  appears, 
then,  that  the  Lord  told  them  to  pray  that  God  would  raise 
up  laborers,  and  then  called  them  to  be  the  laborers  them- 
selves. "  You  have  been  praying  for  men,"  said  he  ;  "  and 
you  are  the  very  men  yourselves.1?'  He  puts  his  hands  upon 
them  one  by  one.  "  You  prayed  God  to  send  out  laborers, 
come  hither  Matthew,  come  hither  Peter,  James,  John.  I 
heard  you  pray  as  I  told  you,  and  behold  I  seud  you  forth  to 
work  for  me."  What  if  God  this  morning  should  move 
some  of  you  to  feel  that  men  are  perishing,  and  you  cannot 
let  them  perish  !  What  if  you  should  pray,  "  Lord,  send 
out  men  to  save  souls,"  and  then  he  should  put  his  hands  on 
you  and  say,  "You  are  the  man  yourself.  Behold  I  send 
you  !  "  I  do  not  suppose  the  twelve  dreamed  for  a  moment 
that  they  would  be  sent  forth  to  be  reapers,  but  so  the  Lord 
of  the  harvest  had  decreed.    Have  I  not  some  men  here  who 


184 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


if  they  thought  it  over  would  say,  "  Lord,  I  am  of  uncouth 
speech,  and  I  cannot  serve  thee  as  I  would,  but  such  as  I 
have  give  I  thee."  And,  dear  brother,  when  you  begin 
to  talk  about  the  Saviour,  you  do  not  know  how  well  you 
will  succeed  ;  and  if  you  do  not  please  yourself  that  does  not 
signify  if  you  please  God.  There  is  another,  a  man  who  has 
been  dumb  half  his  life,  and  yet,  if  he  did  but  know  it, 
has  force  and  power  in  him.  "But  I  shall  never  preach," 
saith  one.  If  you  do  not  preach  you  can  serve  God  somehow 
else.  Could  you  not  start  a  prayer-meeting  in  your  house  ? 
Some  of  you  live  in  different  parts  of  London,  could  not  you 
commence  new  interests  ?  Do  something  for  Jesus.  Some 
of  you,  good  women,  could  you  not  get  young  women  to- 
gether and  talk  to  them  about  the  Saviour  ?  Ay,  but 
perhaps  I  have  some  brother  here  who  has  been  smothering 
in  his  heart  a  desire  to  go  into  the  missionary  field.  Brother, 
do  not  quench  the  Spirit.  You  may  be  missing  your  voca- 
tion while  trying  to  suppress  that  desire.  I  would  sooner 
you  should  burst  into  fanaticism,  some  of  you,  and  become 
right  down  fools  in  enthusiasm,  than  remain  as  the  church 
now  is  in  a  dead  coolness,  caring  little  for  the  souls  of  men. 
What  do  Christian  people  now-a-days  think  of  ?  If  they 
hear  about  Japan,  they  say,  "  Oh,  we  shall  have  a  new  trade 
there  ; "  but  do  they  say,  Who  among  us  can  go  to  Japan 
to  tell  them  of  the  gospel  ?  "  Do  you  not  think  that  mer- 
chants, and  soldiers,  and  sailors,  and  such  like  people  who 
trade  with  distant  parts  of  the  world  are  the  very  persons  to 
spread  the  gospel  ?  Should  not  a  Christian  man  say,  "  I 
shall  try  and  find  a  trade  for  myself  which  will  bring  me 
into  contact  with  a  class  of  persons  that  need  the  gospel,  and 
I  will  use  my  trade  as  the  stalking-horse  for  Christ ;  since 
hypocrites  use  religion  as  a  stalking-horse  for  gain,  I  will 
make  my  trading  subservient  to  my  religion.  "  Oh,"  says 
one,  "we  can  leave  that  to  the  society."  God  bless  the 
society,  and,  I  was  going  to  say,  smother  the  society,  rather 


HARVEST  MEN  WANTED. 


185 


than  allow  it  to  smother  personal  effort.  We  want  our  godly 
merchants,  working  men,  soldiers,  and  sailors  everywhere  to 
feel  "  I  cannot  go  and  get  a  proxy  in  the  shape  of  a  society 
to  do  this  for  me  ;  in  the  name  of  God,  I  will  do  it  myself, 
and  have  a  share  in  this  great  battle."  If  you  cannot  labor 
yourself,  the  society  is  the  grandest  thing  conceivable,  for 
you  may  help  others  thereby  ;  but  still  the  main  cry  from 
Christ  is  that  you  yourself  should  go  into  the  highways  and 
hedges,  and  as  many  as  you  find  compel  them  to  come  in  to 
the  gospel  feast.  The  world  is  dying,  the  grave  is  filling, 
hell  is  boasting,  and  yet  you  have  the  gospel ;  can  it  be  that 
you  do  not  care  to  win  souls,  do  not  care  whether  men  are 
damned  or  saved  !  The  Lord  wake  us  from  this  stony- 
hearted barbarity  to  our  fellow-men,  and  make  us  yearn 
over  them,  care  about  them,  pray  about  them,  and  work  for 
them,  till  the  Lord  shall  arise  and  send  forth  laborers  into 
his  harvest  ! 

But  I  recollect  that  some  of  you  may  very  well  be  uncon- 
cerned about  others,  for  you  are  unconcerned  about  your- 
selves. Oh,  I  do  implore  you,  remain  so  no  longer.  Live 
not  upon  the  brink  of  the  grave  without  a  Saviour  !  Sport 
not  between  the  jaws  of  hell,  but  fly  to  him,  to  him  who 
never  did  reject  a  sinner  who  came  to  him,  and  never  will. 
God  hear  you,  for  Jesus'  sake.  Amen. 


SERMON  X. 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL. 

Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 
ington. 

"  And  this  is  the  Father's  will  which  hath  sent  me,  that  of  all  which 
he  hath  given  me  I  should  lose  nothing,  but  should  raise  it  up  again 
at  the  last  day.  And  this  is  the  will  of  him  that  sent  me,  that  every- 
one which  seeth  the  Son,  and  believeth  on  him  shall  have  everlasting 
life ;  and  I  will  raise  him  up  at  the  last  day." — John  vi.  39,  40. 

Such  our  impertinent  curiosity  that  we  would  fain  peer 
between  the  folded  leaves  of  the  divine  purposes.  The  eager 
thirst  of  man  to  discover  secrets,  to  solve  mysteries,  to  draw 
aside  the  folded  curtains,  and  to  ascertain  that  which  is  past 
finding  out,  tempts  him  full  often  to  the  wildest  conjecture 
and  the  most  adventurous  speculation.  To  get  sight  of  the 
future  how  many  would  rush  to  any  part  of  the  earth  were  it 
possible  to  light  upon  a  spot  from  which  they  could  reconnoi- 
tre the  times  and  the  seasons.  To  know  that  which  God 
conceals  seems  to  be  one  of  the  depraved  desires  of  the  human 
heart.  This  presumptuous  inquiry  is  both  foolish  and  sinful. 
What  hast  thou  to  do,  0  man  !  with  God's  councils  ?  To 
obey  him  is  thy  work,  not  to  attempt  to  know  what  he  does 
not  please  to  reveal.  But  let  us  understand  that  the  gospel  is 
an  extract  from  the  will  of  God,  and  such  an  extract  that  it 
contains  the  very  essence  thereof.    Certainly  there  is  nothing 


THE  FATHERS  WILL. 


187 


in  the  will  of  God  contrary  to  the  gospel.  Among  the  unre- 
vealed  things  there  cannot  be  anything  in  conflict  with  the 
revealed  things ;  none  of  the  secrets  can  possibly  contradict 
those  truths  which  God  has  seen  fit  to  unfold.  0  then, 
you  that  want  to  know  the  will  of  God,  here  is  something  of 
it  for  you  closely  to  observe  and  diligently  to  study  !  If  you 
want  to  read  that  will,  here  it  is  given  to  you  in  two  forms  : 
"  This  is  the  Father's  will  (the  will  of  him  which  hath  sent 
Jesus,  his  only-begotten  Son,  to  be  our  Saviour,)  that  of  all 
which  he  hath  given  me  I  should  lose  nothing,  but  should 
raise  it  up  again  at  the  last  day."  And  here  is  that  same 
will  again  opened  up  before  you,  if  you  have  but  hearts  to 
receive  it  :  "  This  is  the  will  of  him  that  sent  me,  that  every 
one  which  seeth  the  Son,  and  believeth  on  him,  may  have 
everlasting  life  :  and  I  will  raise  him  up  at  the  last 
day." 

The  will  of  God  is  our  salvation.  It  was  from  the  will  of  God 
that  the  very  thought  of  salvation  first  arose.  Had  we  been 
left  to  our  own  wills,  we  should  have  been  willing  to  wander 
further  and  further  from  God.  No  man  originated  the  idea 
of  restoration  for  our  race ;  God  himself  willed  it,  and  it  is 
from  the  purpose  of  his  grace  that  all  our  hopes  begin  ;  and 
the  will  which  originated  salvation  shaped  and  formed  it. 
It  was  God's  will  that  ordained  salvation  by  faith,  salvation 
through  an  atoning  sacrifice,  salvation  by  the  way  of  the  new 
birth,  salvation  by  the  way  of  perseverance  up  to  perfection. 
God  cast  in  his  own  mould  the  way  and  modus  of  salvation, 
and  it  has  been  his  will  that  has  shaped  it ;  like  a  vessel 
revolving  upon  the  wfyeel  before  him,  his  finger  has  made 
the  form  and  fashion  of  it.  According  to  his  own  will  begat 
he  us  that  we  might  be  a  kind  of  first-fruits  of  his  creatures. 
It  is  his  will  that  has  brought  those  of  us  who  are  saved  into 
the  knowledge  of  the  truth,  by  which  will  also  we  are  sancti- 
fied, and  upon  which  will  we  rely,  as  the  motive  force  which 
will  bear  us  onward  throughout  the  entire  of  our  lives ;  bear 


188 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL. 


as  over  the  regions  of  death,  and  bear  us  into  the  land  of  the 
perfect,  where  we  shall  see  the  face  of  God  without  sin. 

Now,  it  is  about  this  will  of  God  that  we  are  going  to 
speak,  taking  the  two  phrases  as  setting  forth  the  divine  side 
of  salvation  and  the  human  side  of  salvation.  You  know, 
beloved  friends,  that  the  general  custom  is,  with  the  various 
sects  of  Christians,  to  take  up  one  part  of  the  Bible  and 
preach  that  part,  and  then  it  is  the  duty  of  all  divines  on 
that  side  of  the  question  not  to  preach  anything  but  that. 
Or  if  they  find  a  text  that  looks  in  rather  a  different  direc- 
tion, these  gentlemen  are  expected  to  twist  it  round  to  suit 
their  creed,  it  being  supposed  that  only  one  set  of  truths  can 
possibly  be  worth  defending,  it  never  having  entered  into  the 
heads  of  some  people  that  there  can  be  two  apparently  ir- 
reconcilable truths  which  nevertheless  are  equally  valuable. 
Think  not  that  I  come  here  to  defend  the  human  side  of 
salvation  at  the  expense  of  the  divine  ;  nor  am  I  desirous  to 
magnify  the  divine  side  of  it  at  the  expense  of  the  human  ; 
rather  would  I  beseech  you  to  look  at  the  two  texts  which 
are  together  before  us,  and  to  be  prepared  to  receive  both 
sets  of  truths.  I  think  it  a  very  dangerous  thing  to  say  that 
the  truth  lies  between  the  two  extremes.  It  does  not ;  the 
truth  lies  in  the  two,  in  the  comprehension  of  both  ;  not 
in  taking  a  part  from  this  and  a  part  from  that,  toning 
down  one  and  modulating  the  other,  as  is  too  much  the 
custom,  but  in  believing  and  giving  full  expression  to  every- 
thing that  God  reveals  whether  we  can  reconcile  the  things 
or  not,  opening  our  hearts  as  children  open  their  under- 
standings to  their  father's  teaching,  feeling  that  if  the  gospel 
were  such  that  we  could  make  it  into  a  complete  system, 
we  might  be  quite  sure  it  was  not  God's  gospel,  for  any 
system  that  comes  from  God  must  be  too  grand  for  the 
human  brain  to  grasp  at  one  effort ;  and  any  path  that  he 
takes  must  extend  too  far  beyond  the  line  of  our  vision  for 
us  to  make  a  nice  little  map  of  it,  and  mark  it  out  in  squares. 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL. 


189 


This  world,  you  know,  we  can  readily  enough  map.  Go  and 
get  charts,  and  you  shall  find  that  men  of  understanding 
have  indicated  almost  every  rock  in  the  sea,  almost  every 
hamlet  on  the  land  ;  but  they  cannot  map  out  the  heavens 
in  that  way,  for  albeit  that  you  can  buy  the  celestial  atlas, 
yet  as  you  are  well  enough  aware  there  is  not  one  in  ten 
thousand  of  the  stars  that  can  possibly  be  put  there ;  when 
they  are  resolved  by  the  telescope  they  become  altogether 
innumerable,  and  so  far  exceed  all  count  that  it  is  impossible 
for  us  to  reckon  them  up  in  order  and  say,  that  is  the  name 
of  this,  and  this  is  the  name  of  that.  We  must  leave  them  : 
they  are  beyond  us.  There  are  deeps  into  which  we  cannot 
peer ;  even  the  strongest  glass  cannot  show  us  much  more 
than  a  mere  corner  of  the  starry  worlds.  Thus  too  is  it  with 
the  doctrines  of  the  gospel :  they  are  too  bright  for  our  weak 
eyes,  too  sublime  for  our  finite  minds  to  scan,  save  at  a  hum- 
ble distance.  Be  it  ours  to  take  all  we  can  of  their  solemn 
import,  to  believe  them  heartily,  accept  them  gratefully,  and 
then  fall  down  before  the  Lord,  and  pour  out  our  very  souls 
in  worshipping  him. 

I.  Well,  now  we  come  to  our  two  texts.  The  first  is  the 
divine  side  of  the  woek  of  salvation.  It  needeth  to 
come  first,  such  is  its  dignity.  "  This  is  the  Father's  will 
which  hath  sent  me,  that  of  all  which  he  hath  given  me 
I  should  lose  nothing,  but  should  raise  it  up  again  at  the 
last  day." 

Mark  attentively  the  announcement,  how  sovereign  its 
character!  "  This  is  the  Father's  will."  Majestic  words — 
"  This  is  the  Father's  will."  No  "  if,"  no  "  but,"  no  asking 
and  requesting  of  men,  no  bending  the  knee  to  their  choice 
or  caprice,  no  asking  them  if  they  will  please  to  have  it  so, 
but—"  This  is  the  Father's  will."  That  is  the  will  which  is 
altogether  absolute  and  independent,  revolving  on  its  own 
axis,  the  will  that  called  creation  out  of  nothing,  the  will 
which  cannot  be  thwarted,  for  it  is  omnipotent,  which  none 


190 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL. 


may  stand  against,  for  it  proceedeth  ever  on  its  eternal  course. 
It  is  a  fixed  will,  for  God  is  not  fickle  as  we  are,  lie  doth  not 
will  this  to-day  and  that  to-morrow.  "  I  am  God,"  saith  he, 
"  and  change  not."  He  is  "  the  Father  of  lights,  with  whom 
is  no  variableness,  neither  shadow  of  turning," — a  fixed, 
irresistible  will,  standing  the  same  from  everlasting  to  ever- 
lasting ;  not  subject  to  change.  "Would  you  have  it  change 
for  the  better  ?  How  could  that  be  ?  Can  God  be  better  ? 
Would  you  have  it  change  for  the  worse  ?  Would  God  be 
God  if  he  could  be  worse  than  he  is  ?  How  can  it  be  that 
perfection  can  change  ?  It  must  ever  remain  perfection  : 
a  change  were  to  bring  in  imperfection  into  that  which  is 
complete.  To  God's  eternal  mind  there  is  no  past,  there 
is  no  future. 

"  He  fills  bis  own  eternal  now, 
And  sees  her  ages  past. " 

Looking  as  he  does  from  heaven,  he  takes  in  at  one  glance  all 
those  periods  of  time  which  we  are  accustomed  to  call  ages 
and  cycles  ;  they  are  all  as  the  twinkling  of  an  eye  to  him, 
for  "  a  thousand  years  in  his  sight  are  but  as  yesterday  when 
it  is  past,  and  as  a  watch  in  the  night."  Let  me,  then  again 
read  these  words,  they  concern  the  salvation  of  his  people. 
"  This  is  the  Father's  will."  I  say  again  how  grand  they  are. 
"  This  is  the  Father's  will."  0  God,  I  tremble  at  thy  will, 
until  I  read  those  lines  ;  I  know  not  what  thy  will  may  be, 
and  since  I  know  it  must  be  accomplished  I  cower  down 
at  thy  feet  in  terror  until  I  read  that  mercy  is  the  Father's 
will,  that  love  is  the  Father's  will,  that  salvation  is  the 
Father's  will,  and  then  my  heart  flies  into  thy  bosom  with  ^ 
ecstasy  and  joy,  to  think  that  thine  omnipotent,  unchangea- 
ble will  should  be  such  good-will ;  so  full  of  benevolence,  so 
full  of  love  ! 

Following  the  current  of  this  testimony,  we  are  intro- 
duced to  the  obedient  servant  of  that  ivill.    "  This  is  the 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL. 


191 


Father's  will,  which  hath  sent  me."  Bead  the  thirty-eighth 
verse  : — "  For  I  came  down  from  heaven,  not  to  do  mine 
own  will,  but  the  will  of  him  that  sent  me."  Christ,  then, 
is  the  obedient-sent  servant  of  his  Father's  will.  But  why 
doth  he  say,  "not  to  do  my  own  will"?  The  meaning,  I 
doubt  not,  as  Dr.  Owen  well  interprets  it,  is  first  or  pri- 
marily, in  reply  to  the  malicious  charge  of  the  Jews,  "  that 
he  was  not  intent  to  accomplish  or  bring  about  any  private 
purposes  of  his  own  distinct  or  different  from  those  of  his 
Father."  But  more  than  this,  "the  will  of  God,  which 
Christ  came  to  fulfil,  is  sometimes  taken  for  the  command- 
ment which  he  received  from  the  Father."  So  he  saith 
in  the  fortieth  Psalm,  "  I  delight  to  do  thy  will,  0  my  God  : 
yea,  thy  law  is  within  my  heart."  As  though  he  should 
protest  "  all  that  thou  requirest  at  my  hand  as  mediator 
I  am  ready  to  perform."  Was  it  not  to  this  end  that  he  did 
verily  "  take  on  him  the  form  of  a  servant "  ?  And  for  the 
self-same  cause  did  not  the  Father  expressly  call  his  servant, 
as  you  read  in  the  forty-second  chapter  of  Isaiah — "  Behold 
my  servant,  whom  I  uphold,  mine  elect,  in  whom  my  soul 
delighteth  ;  I  have  put  my  Spirit  upon  him  :  he  shall  bring 
forth  judgment  to  the  Gentiles  "  ?  Thus  is  he  the  servant 
of  the  Father  in  the  accomplishment  of  that  work  for  which 
the  Spirit  was  put  upon  him.  Moreover,  the  "  will  of  God" 
may  be  taken  for  this  purpose,  his  decrees,  his  good  pleasure, 
to  fulfil  which  Christ  came  into  the  world.  It  is  thifs  little 
by  little  that  the  full  sense  of  the  words  breaks  on  our  minds. 
Now,  as  I  turn  that  over  in  my  mind,  "  not  to  do  mine  own 
will,  hut  the  will  of  him  that  sent  me"  I  am  prone  to  reflect, 
"  It  is  for  me  to  lay  down  my  will  at  God's  feet."  Well,  it 
is  but  fit  and  right  for  all  of  us  to  do  so.  For  every  one 
of  us  to  say :  "  I  came  not  to  do  mine  own  will,"  seems 
natural  and  proper.  But  Christ,  beloved, — his  will  is  per- 
fect, his  will  is  as  complete  as  the  will  of  God  itself  ;  it  is, 
in  fact,  coincident,  must  be  coincident,  with  the  will  of  God. 


192 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL. 


But  he  speaks  as  God-man — mediator,  and  he  puts  it  so, 
that  he  may  be  to  us  the  pattern  of  complete  resignation 
and  perfect  obedience.  "  I,  even  I,  who  have  no  difference 
with  God,  who  am  God,  who  will  as  God  wills,  yet  I  'came 
not  to  do  mine  own  will,  but  the  will  of  Him  that  sent  me." 
Why,  think  you,  was  it  needful  that  he  should  say  that? 
It  was  needful,  as  I  have  already  said,  as  an  example  to 
us,  but  further  needful  that  every  one  of  us  may  know  that 
Christ  is  no  amateur  Saviour,  come  into  the  world  to  save 
without  a  commission  and  without  authority.  He  has  come 
here  willingly  enough,  but  still  the  reason  of  his  coming 
is  his  Father's  will.  When  Christ  forgives  a  sinner  it  is  his 
Father's  will  :  when  Christ  receives  a  rebel  to  his  bosom, 
it  is  his  Father's  will.  He  does  not  save  us  clandestinely 
or  in  any  manner  inconsiderate  of  or  contrary  to  the  divine 
purposes,  nor  yet  in  some  such  way  as  though  by  the  tender- 
ness of  a  friend  he  would  rescue  us  from  the  sternness  of 
a  judge.  No,  no,  in  no  wise  ;  for  all  that  Jesus  does  is  the 
Father's  will,  as  he  would  say  of  us,  "  I  say  not  that  I 
will  pray  the  Father  for  you,  for  the  Father  himself  .loveth 
you."  The  will  which  Christ  is  doing  is  the  Father's  will. 
All  that  he  is  engaged  to  bring  about  is  according  to  the  will 
of  the  Father.    Let  us  bless  his  name  for  that. 

Well  now ;  it  would  appear  that  God  in  his  divine  will 
was  pleased  to  give  to  Jesus,  his  obedient  servant,  a  number 
of  men  out  of  mankind  who  were  to  be  his.  Is  not  that 
the  plain  meaning  of  the  passage,  "  This  is  the  will  of  him 
that  sent  me,  that  of  all  which  he  hath  given  me  I  should 
lose  nothing  "  ?  The  Father  gave  to  the  Son,  then,  a  num- 
ber, I  believe  it  was  a  number  that  no  man  can  number, 
a  number  far  beyond  the  bounds  of  our  thought ;  but  he  did 
give  a  certain  number  whom  he  himself  had  chosen  from  before 
the  foundation  of  the  world,  and  these  became  the  property 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  They  were  put  under  a  different 
government,  being  placed  under  the  mediatorial  sway  of  the 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL. 


193 


Son  of  God.  They  became  disciples — not  by  their  own 
natural  inclination,  but  by  his  gracious  calling  :  they  be- 
came Christ's  flock,  he  was  their  shepherd ;  they  were  to 
become  Christ's  body,  he  was  to  be  the  head  :  in  due  time 
they  were  to  be  Christ's  bride,  he  was  to  be  the  husband  ; 
they  were  to  be  Christ's  brethren,  and  they  were  to  be  con- 
formed to  him  that  he  might  be  the  first-born  among  many 
brethren.  Now  this  is  a  great  transaction  full  of  sublimity, 
—let  us  not  forget  it  or  slight  it.  There  was  a  day  before 
all  days  when  there  was  no  day  but  the  Ancient  of  Days, 
and  then  the  Ancient  of  Days  in  his  eternal  wisdom  trans- 
ferred a  number  of  men  whom  he  had  chosen  into  the  hands 
of  J esus  Christ.  It  is  of  no  use  cavilling  at  it ;  it  is  true  ;  it 
was  so  ;  and  it  is  so  ;  for  the  mouth  of  the  Lord  hath  spoken 
it.  God's  eternal  and  electing  purpose  severed  from  the  mass 
of  mankind  a  people  who  were  to  belong  to  Jesus.  Let  us  say 
"  Amen  "  to  the  record. 

The  next  thing  we  learn  here  is  that  all  these  persons 
Jesus  Christ  undertook  to  keep.  It  was  the  Father's  will  that 
of  all  who  were  given  to  Christ  he  should  lose — what  ? — "  lose 
nothing."    This  is  a  very  remarkable  expression.    It  does  not 

i  say  he  should  lose  none,  that  is  true  ;  but  lose  no  thing,  "  no- 
thing."   The  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  therefore,  has  taken  all 

i  those  who  were  given  of  the  Father  to  him,  into  his  custody. 
He  is  the  Surety,  he  is  responsible  for  them,  and  he  keeps 
them.    In  what  way  does  he  keep  them  ?    Seeing  they  were 

j  lost  he  redeemed  them  :  seeing  they  were  far  from  him  he 
fetches  them  back  of  his  grace,  by  the  power  of  his  Spirit : 

i  seeing  that  they  are  still  prone  to  wander  he  restores  their 
souls  ;  seeing  that  they  are  imperfect  he  sanctifies  them ; 

j  and  he  will  continue  the  work  of  sanctification,  and  he 
will  make  them  one  day  to  be  without  spot,  or  wrinkle, 

j  or  any  such  thing. 

But  the  text  says  he  will  "  lose  nothing,"  by  which  he 

i  means  that  while  he  will  certainly  not  lose  one  that  his 
9 


194 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL 


Father  gave  him,  he  will  not  lose  any  part  of  one  of  them. 
For  look  at  that  child  of  God  who  died  a  few  months  ago  ; 
we  laid  him  in  the  grave  with  many  tears,  and  we  believe 
his  spirit  is  taken  up  to  the  right  hand  of  God,  but  where  is 
his  body  ?  Ah,  we  should  not  like  to  exhume  it ;  it  would 
be  a  terrible  spectacle  if  we  should  take  it  out  of  that  coffin, 
or  open  the  lid  and  look  at  all  that  mass  of  putridity.  Surely 
this  is  part  of  one  of  Christ's  people  that  has  been  lost  ! 
Ah,  but  it  is  not  his  Father's  will  that  Christ  should  lose 
anything  of  what  was  given  him ;  and  therefore  he  adds, 
"  I  will  raise  it  up  at  the  last  day."  When  the  trumpet 
sounds  the  dead  shall  come  forth  from  their  graves,  and 
there  shall  not  be  left  in  the  grave  a  bone,  nor  a  piece  of 
a  bone  of  one  of  the  Lord's  redeemed  ;  they  shall  come  again 
from  the  land  of  the  enemy,  and  leave  nothing  behind  them. 
When  Israel  came  out  of  Egypt  the  great  Master  did  not 
bring  some  of  the  people  out  and  leave  some  behind.  Oh, 
no  !  Neither  did  he  bring  all  the  people,  and  leave  their 
property  behind.  Did  not  Moses  say  to  Pharaoh,  "  There 
shall  not  a  hoof  be  left  behind;"  not  a  solitary  lamb  of 
all  the  flocks,  there  shall  not  be  one  left  behind.  And  so 
out  of  the  entire  company  that  God  the  Father  has  given 
into  the  custody  of  Jesus,  there  shall  not  only  not  be  one 
soul  lost,  but  no  part  of  any  of  them  ;  neither  of  their  body, 
of  their  soul,  nor  of  their  spirit.  Death  shall  yield  up  its 
captives,  they  shall  be  completely  free  : — 

"  Then  all  the  chosen  race 

Shall  meet  around  the  throne, 
To  bless  the  conduct  of  his  grace 
And  make  his  glories  known." 

That  is  the  divine  side  of  salvation,  and  that  is  the  truth 
which  this  first  part  of  our  text  teaches. 

Do  I  hear  somebody  say,  "  I  think  that  doctrine  is  dan- 
gerous "  ?    My  dear  sir,  who  is  it  dangerous  to  but  fools  ? 


THE  FATHER'S  W^L. 


195 


If  God  has  taught  it  there  can  be  no  danger  in  it.  At  the 
same  time  there  never  was  a  truth  which  foolish  persons 
could  not  distort  and  turn  into  mischief.  Eopes  are  good 
things,  but  many  people  have  hung  themselves  with  them ; 
and  there  is  many  a  grand  doctrine  which  men  wrest  to 
their  own  destruction,  and  we  cannot  be  shaping  God's  truth 
down  to  consult  the  folly  and  sin  of  man.  The  question  is, 
is  it  in  the  Bible  ?  If  it  is  there  let  none  of  us  ever  say  it  is 
dangerous.  "  Well,  but,"  say  you,  "  is  it  not  all  about  secret 
things  ?  "  Be  it  so  ;  then  you  need  not  be  at  all  alarmed  at 
our  talking  about  it,  for  none  of  us  can  divulge  anything 
which  is  secret  :  therefore  you  need  not  be  under  any  con- 
cern that  we  shall  do  it.  If  it  be  secret,  then  so  far  as  it 
is  secret  we  cannot  intermeddle  with  it ;  but  we  do  say  this, 
that  whatever  of  it  has  been  revealed  is  for  us,  and  for  our 
children,  and  we  are  not  ashamed  to  speak  of  what  God  was 
not  ashamed  to  declare. 

Moreover  we  have  proved  it  to  be  good,  comfortable,  solid, 
soul-sustaining,  sanctifying  doctrine,  for  if  there  is  anything 
in  this  world  that  can  put  into  a  man  force,  life,  energy,  it  is 
the  belief  that  God  has  chosen  him  unto  eternal  life,  has  put 
into  him  an  unconquerable  nature  which  must  fight  against 
sin  until  it  overcomes  it,  and  that  Christ  is  engaged  to  bring 
him  safely  to  the  right  hand  of  the  Most  High.  Why,  the 
gratitude  of  a  man  that  believes  this  becomes  the  master- 
power  of  his  life.  \ 


Slaves  are  whipped  to  the  battle,  but  the  freeman  goes 
cheerfully  to  fight  for  the  cause  dear  to  his  heart.  The  man 
that  only  lives  a  good  life  because  he  is  afraid  of  being  damned 
is  a  mere  hireling  in  the  house  of  God ;  but  the  man  who 


Loved  of  my  God,  for  him  again 
With  love  intense  I  burn  ; 
Chosen  of  him  ere  time  began 
I  choose  Him  in  return." 


196 


TH»  FATHER  S  WILL. 


knows  that  he  is  God's  own  child,  and  never  will  be  any- 
thing else,  that  God  loves  him  and  must  love  him,  says  now, 
out  of  no  desire  of  reward  and  no  fears  of  punishment,  being 
saved,  forever  saved,  "  I  love  my  Lord  with  all  my  heart  and 
soul  and  strength,  and  I  will  render  to  him  the  obedience  of 
a  child  which  is  infinitely  superior  to  the  obedience  of  a 
slave."  I  question  the  possibility  of  virtue  to  a  man  who 
cannot  say,  "I  am  saved."  He  that  does  good  works  in 
order  to  his  being  saved,  or  in  order  to  keep  himself  from 
the  peril  of  being  lost,  acts  from  a  selfish  motive,  and  is 
serving  himself  rather  than  his  God.  But  he,  on  the  other 
hand,  who  feels  that  he  is  bought  with  a  price  and  is  deliv- 
ered, is  saved,  is  a  child  of  God,  can  say,  "  Now  I  have 
not  myself  to  consider  but  my  God.  Now  will  I  live  for 
him,  now  will  I  spend  and  be  spent,  that  I  may  glorify  his 
name."  The  Lord  grant  to  us  to  be  brought  into  that 
condition  in  which  we  can  understand  and  enjoy  this  doc- 
trine, and  may  we  then  by  our  lives  prove  our  gratitude  for 
the  great  benefits  we  have  received  of  him. 

II.  Now  I  am  going  to  take  the  human"  side,  and  I  think 
I  hear  somebody  say, — "  Though  I  liked  the  first  part,  I  know 
I  shall  not  like  the  second."  Dear  hearer,  what  right  have 
you  to  cavil  at  aught  that  is  true  ?  Somebody  on  the  other 
hand  may  say,  "  I  do  not  believe  in  this  first  part,  perhaps 
I  may  in  the  second."  My  dear  friend,  I  wish  you  would 
give  up  that  notion  of  picking  and  choosing  parts  of  God's 
word  that  are  agreeable  to  our  taste  ;  but  rather  take  the 
whole  from  the  beginning  of  it  to  the  end  of  it,  so  you  shall 
find  pleasure  and  profit  all  the  way  through.  Truly,  brethren, 
it  is  shocking  to  think  of  the  theoretical  difficulties  that 
people  make  for  themselves  by  a  kind  of  smart  criticism  that 
seems  clever,  but  lacks  common  sense.  In  this  very  chapter, 
at  the  twenty-seventh  verse,  you  read — "  Labor  not  for  the 
meat  which  pensheth,  but  for  that  meat  which  endureth  unto 
everlasting  life,  which  the  Son  of  Man  shall  give  unto  you." 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL. 


197 


The  fact  is,  you  get  here  two  paradoxes  in  one  sentence. 
You  are  told  not  to  labor  for  that  meat  which  no  man  can 
procure  without  labor,  and  you  are  told  to  labor  for  that 
bread  which  no  man  can  procure  by  labor  because  it  is  a 
free  gift.  Howbeit,  the  thing  needs  no  explanation.  It 
is  clear  as  daylight  to  every  discerning  heart.  Here,  then,  is 
the  human  side  of  salvation  :  "  This  is  the  will  of  him  that 
sent  me,  that  every  one  which  seeth  the  Son,  and  believeth 
on  him,  may  have  everlasting  life,  and  I  will  raise  him  up  at 
the  last  day." 

Observe,  there  is  no  lowering  of  the  tone.  The  same 
august  words  strike  us  on  the  threshold  of  each  announce- 
ment. "This  is  the  will  of  him  that  sent  me."  The  freest 
proclamations  of  the  gospel  that  can  ever  be  given  are  as 
much  divine  as  are  the  plainest  declarations  of  distinguishing 
grace.  Listen,"  then,  with  equal  attention  to  this  second 
part,  for  this  has  the  same  imprimatur,  the  same  divine 
stamp  upon  it  : — "  This  is  the  will  of  him  that  sent  me." 

Notice  again  that  there  is  the  same  obedient  servant 
engaged  on  this  occasion  as  before.  Whether  you  look  at  the 
divine  side  or  the  human  side  of  salvation,  the  most  conspicu- 
ous object  is  still  Jesus  Christ.  If  God  looks  down  on  men 
it  is  through  his  Anointed,  or  if  men  look  up  to  God,  it  is 
through  God's  Christ  whom  he  has  sent.  The  points  of 
difference  we  will  therefore  dwell  upon.  In  this  second 
verse  the  persons  described  as  partakers  of  the  benefit  of 
salvation  are  thus  described  :  "Every  one  which  seeth  the 
Son,  and  believeth  on  him." 

What  are  we  to  understand  by  these  words — "  Every  one 
which  seeth  the  Son  "  ?  We  cannot  see  the  Son  now  with 
our  natural  organs  of  sight ;  for  Jesus  has  gone  up  to  heaven. 
With  these  optics  we  cannot  scan  his  features  or  perceive  his 
presence.  But  when  we  read  of  him  in  the  Evangelists,  and 
when  we  hear  of  him  from  the  mouths  of  his  servants,  we 
do  in  effect  see  him  evidently  set  forth  before  us.    The  eyes 


198 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL. 


of  our  understanding  discern  him.  The  sense  of  faith  recog- 
nizes him.  Now  if  by  that  sight,  that  knowledge,  that  in- 
formation, we  are  led  to  believe  on  him,  then  we  have  ever- 
lasting life.  Whoever  he  may  be — "  Every  one,"  it  says — 
"Every  one  which  seeth  the  Son,  and  believeth  on  him," 
comes  in  for  the  same  privilege.  This  includes  the  man 
with  great  faith,  but  it  equally  includes  the  babe  with  little 
faith.  This  includes  the  man  of  reputable  character,  but  it 
equally  includes  the  man  whose  character  has  been  up  till 
now  disreputable.  "Every. one  that  believeth  on  him." 
Does  it  mean  that  if  I  believe  on  him  I  have  eternal  life  f 
Yes,  whoever  you  are  ;  you  may  listen  to  it  in  the  dark,  I 
do  not  want  to  look  at  you  to  discriminate  between  one  indi- 
vidual and  another.  The  assertion  is  wide  enough  for  all  of 
you.  Are  you  a  black  man,  or  a  white  man  ?  Are  you  a 
yellow  man,  or  a  brown  man  ?  It  matters  not.  Are  you 
rich,  or  are  you  poor,  one  in  the  higher  ranks,  or  one  obscure 
and  despised  ?  It  matters  not.  Whoever  you  may  be,  every 
child  of  man  that  is  born  of  woman,  that  seeth  the  Son,  and 
believeth  on  him,  shall  have  eternal  life.  Are  there  no 
exceptions  ?  None  whatever.  Can  it  not  be  supposed  that 
some  characters  may  be  excluded  ?  None  are  excluded  hence 
but  those  who  do  themselves  exclude.  The  learned  and 
polite,  the  ignorant  and  rude,  "  every  one  which  seeth  the 
Son,  and  believeth  on  him,  may  have  everlasting  life." 
That  is  to  say,  to  go  over  the  same  matter  yet  again,  every 
man,  woman,  child,  every  one  of  the  human  race  that  trusts 
his  soul  with  the  Son  of  God,  has  everlasting  life.  "  Well, 
but,"  saith  one,  "  suppose  I  should  not  have  been  given  by 
God  the  Father  to  the  Son  ?"  You  have  no  right  to  sup- 
pose that.  If  you  believe  in  Jesus  Christ  you  have  everlast- 
ing life.  I  could  explain,  I  think,  a  little  to  you,  at  least  I 
have  a  way  of  explaining  it  to  myself,  how  these  two  meet. 
I  do  not  care  to  explain  it,  I  do  not  think  it  is  necessary  at 
all,  for  it  is  so.    There  never  was  a  soul  that  believed  on 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL. 


199 


Jesus  yet  but  G-od  the  Father  had  given  that  soul  to  Christ ; 
there  never  was  a  soul  that  trusted  the  Saviour  yet  but  it 
turned  out  that  after  all  that  soul  had  been  ordained  to  do  so 
from  before  the  foundation  of  the  world.  We  will  not  attempt 
to  answer  objections.  There  is  the  truth,  the  plain,  naked 
truth.  This  is  the  will  of  him  that  sent  the  Saviour  into 
the  world,  that  every  one  that  seeth  the  Son,  and  believeth 
on  him,  should  at  once  have  eternal  life.  0  what  a  splendid 
gospel  that  is  !  Now,  when  I  go  out  to  preach  I  have  not  to  say, 
"  I  am  going  to  preach  to  God's  elect " — not  at  all  :  "  Every 
one  which  seeth  the  Son,  and  believeth  on  him,  may  have 
everlasting  life  ; "  nor  have  I  said  to  myself,  "  Now  I  shall 
pick  out  certain  characters  that  I  think  must  be  a  delinea- 
tion of  God's  chosen."  I  have  no  right  to  make  any  picking 
or  choosing,  there  is  the  Gospel, — "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world 
and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature.  He  that  believeth 
^nd  is  baptized  shall  be  saved."  And  this  again  is  the  gos- 
pel :  "  That  every  one  which  seeth  the  Son,  and  believeth  on 
him,  may  have  everlasting  life."  There  let  it  stand,  then  ;  we 
will  not  clip  its  wings  but  we  will  rejoice  in  its  simple  verity. 

Now  it  appears  that  these  persons  who  believe  in  Jesus, 
whoever  they  may  be,  are  already  in  a  present  state  of  safety, 
for  as  soon  as  they  believe  on  him  they  have  everlasting  life, 
they  are  made  alive  unto  God,  they  receive  a  spiritual  life 
which  they  never  had  before.  The  Holy  Ghost  comes  into 
them  and  quickens  them.  Whereas  they  were  heretofore 
dead  in  trespasses  and  sins,  the  Holy  Ghost  makes  them 
alive  unto  God  by  Jesus  Christ.  And  this  is  true  of  every 
one  that  seetk?  the  Son,  and  believeth  on  him.  This  life 
which  is  thus  given  is  a  life  that  cannot  die,  for  it  is  ever- 
lasting. Everlasting  life  is  freely  and  sovereignly  bestowed,  so 
that  every  believer  has  in  him  a  vital  principle  which  cannot 
be  destroyed  any  more  than  God  himself  can.  For  as  God's 
life  is  everlasting  life,  so  the  life  of  every  believer  is  called 
"everlasting  life."    0  seethe  blessedness  of  this,  "that 


200 


THE  FATHER'S  WILL. 


every  one  which  seeth  the  Son,  and  believeth  on  him,  may 
have  everlasting  life."  We  do  not  seem  to  want  to  preach 
upon  that ;  I  like  to  roll  it  over  under  my  tongue.  I  should 
like  everybody  here  that  is  perplexing  himself  about  the 
dootrines  of  the  gospel,  and  saying,  "  Perhaps  I  am  shut  out 
from  the  mercy  of  God,"  just  to  go  home  repeating  these 
words.  Therefore  I  will  repeat  them  again  :  "  That  every 
one  which  seeth  the  Son,  and  believeth  ou  him,  may  have 
everlasting  life."  And  since  notwithstanding  this  gift  of 
everlasting  life  the  bodies  of  believers  die,  Jesus  Christ  has 
added  here  that  it  is  the  will  of  the  Father  that  he  should 
"  raise  him  up  at  the  last  day."  It  seems,  then,  beloved, 
that  no  believer  shall  be  lost  and  nothing  of  a  believer,  for 
if  his  body  must  be  put  into  the  ground,  corruption,  earth 
and  worms  shall  but  refine  his  flesh,  till  at  the  sound  of  the 
last  trumpet  he  shall  put  it  on  afresh.  "  I  will  raise  him  up 
at  the  last  day."  Then  it  seems  that  if  I  am  a  believer  in 
Jesus  I  may  conclude  that  God  the  Father  gave  me  to  Christ 
to  save  me,  and  that  Christ  will  save  me  and  keep  me  until 
he  himself  shall  descend  from  heaven  with  a  shout,  and  call 
his  own  redeemed  out  of  the  graves.  Thus  the  two  truths 
are  reconciled — may  they  be  reconciled  in  our  experience  as 
well  as  in  our  faith  ! 

Now,  then,  to  close,  let  me  say  to  any  troubled  person 
here  present  :  Beloved  friend,  never  fear  that  there  is  any- 
thing in  the  secret  purposes  of  God  which  can  contradict  the 
open  promises  of  God.  Never  dream,  if  you  are  a  believer, 
that  there  can  be  any  dark  decree  that  shuts  you  out  from 
the  benefits  of  grace.  Decrees  or  no  decrees,  "  this  is  the 
will  of  him  that  sent  me,  that  every  one  which  seeth  the 
Son,  and  believeth  on  him,  may  have  everlasting  life."  Lay 
hold,  therefore,  on  Christ  with  all  your  heart,  poor  sinner  ; 
ask  not  to  know  whether  thy  name  is  in  the  Book  of  Life ; 
come  just  as  thou  art,  by  God's  own  invitation,  and  lay  hold 
on  Jesus  Christ.    The  woman  in  the  press  could  not  tell 


THE  FAT II Eli  S  WILL. 


201 


whether  it  was  written  in  the  book  of  decrees  that  she  should 
be  healed,  but  she  came  behind  the  Saviour  and  touched  the 
hem  of  his  garment,  and  was  made  whole.  The  dying  thief 
did  not  stop  to  inquire,  "  Was  I  chosen  of  Gocl  ere  time 
began  ? "  but  he  said,  "  Lord,  remember  me  when  thou 
comest  into  thy  kingdom."  .  Now  do  you  in  like  manner 
act  upon  your  present  exigence,  and  fit  your  prayer  to  the 
present  opportunity.  The  doctrine  of  decrees  never  oper- 
ates upon  a  man's  ordinary  life.  What  hungry  man  would 
halt,  or  hesitate,  or  say,  "  I  cannot  tell  whether  it  is  the 
purpose  of  God  that  I  should  eat,"  but  when  the  provision 
is  spread  out  before  him  he  eats.  Would  the  weary  man 
yex  his  soul  "with  misgivings,  and  say,  "Iwant  to  know 
whether  it  is  the  purpose  of  God  I  should  sleep  ?  "  nay,  but 
he  acts  like  a  sensible  creature  and  goes  to  his  bed  at  the 
time  of  rest,  grateful  for  the  interval  of  deep  repose  that 
can  renew  his  strength  and  freshen  up  his  vital  powers. 
Now  do  you  go  and  do  likewise.  Do  not  rebel  at  the  pur- 
poses, or  deny  them,  but  act  upon  the  precepts,  and  rejoice 
in  them  ;  they  are  the  guide  for  you.  Rely  upon  the  prom- 
ises ;  that  is  the  way  for  you  to  realize  them  :  and  inasmuch 
as  the  clear  promise  rings  out  from  the  eternal  throne,  "  Him 
that  cometh  to  me  I  will  in  no  wise  cast  out,"  do  thou  go 
and  see  if  he  will  cast  thee  out.  Come,  thou  black  sinner, 
thou  foul  sinner,  thou  devilish  sinner — come  thou  who  art 
stained  with  every  sin,  come  and  see  if  Christ  will  reject 
thee  ;  «nd  recollect  that  the  text  that  should  encourage  thee 
stands  hard  by  that  which  may  embarrass  thee — close  to  it — 
where  Jesus  says,  "  All  that  the  Father  giveth  me  shall 
come  to  me  ;  and  him  that  cometh  to  me  I  will  in  no  wise 
cast  out.  For  I  came  down  from  heaven,  not  to  do  mine 
own  will,  but  the  will  of  him  that  sent  me."  I  do  pray  that 
those  words  may  encourage  many  souls  to  come. 

And  once  more,  fear  not  that  if  you  believe,  your  believ- 
ing will  end  in  failure.    If  you  believe  in  Jesus  Christ,  the 
9* 


202  the  father's  will. 

text  says,  "It  is  the  Father's  will"  that  you  should  "have 
eternal  life,"  and  be  "raised  up  at  the  last  day."  The  ques- 
tion sometimes  comes  to  one's  mind — "  After  I  have  believed 
in  Jesus,  and  placed  all  my  hope  in  him,  may  I  not  after  all 
perish  ?  Is  there  not  something  expected  of  me  in  which  I 
may  fail  ?  If  I  rest  upon  him  as  a  rock,  yet  still  are  there 
not  some  other  props  and  buttresses  wanted,  and  if  I  shall 
not  supply  them  shall  I  be  safe  at  last  ?  "  "Well,  I  frankly 
confess  if  there  be  anything  wanted  as  the  ground  of  a  sin- 
ner's hope  beyond  the  blood  and  righteousness  of  Jesus 
Christ,  I,  who  preach  to  you,  must  certainly  perish,  for  I  can 
sing  the  hymn  we  sang  this  morning  with  all  my  heart — 
"  Other  refuge  have  I  none, 

Hangs  my  helpless  soul  on  thee  ; 

Leave,  oh,  leave  me  not  alone, 

Still  support  and  comfort  me." 

"We  desire  to  abound  in  good  works ;  we  desire  to  destroy 
every  vice,  and  forsake  all  falsehood  and  all  evil ;  but  we 
cannot  depend  on  these  things,  we  cannot  mix  them  up  with 
the  blood  and  righteousness  of  Jesus  Christ.  Our  one  hope 
lies  here,  that  Jesus  died,  and  Cod  hath  said  it,  "  He  that 
belie veth  on  him  hath  eternal  life,  and  shall  be  raised  up  at 
the  last  day."  Now  suppose,  after  all,  you  should  believe  on 
him  and  find  at  last  that  you  are  not  saved  !  Beloved,  the 
supposition  cannot  be  entertained  for  a  moment,  for  it  is 
written,  "It  is  the  Father's  will."  Is  that  will  to  be 
thwarted  ?  It  is  written  that  he  has  sent  Christ  :  has 
Christ  come  in  vain  ?  God  must  be  false  to  all  his  promises, 
belie  his  oath,  degrade  his  Son,  before  he  can  suffer  a  soul 
that  seeth  the  Son  and  believeth  on  him  to  perish.  You  are 
all  safe  enough  if  you  are  resting  there.  Do  not  let  a  doubt 
disturb  you.  Go  your  way  full  of  peace  and  consolation,  and 
the  Lord  be  with  you  !  But,  oh,  if  you  have  never  believed 
in  Jesus,  may  your  spirits  never  know  any  rest  till  you  do  ! 
May  you  never  be  content  till  you  flee  to  him,  and  rest  on 
him  !   The  Lord  grant  it,  for  his  dear  name's  sake.  Amen. 


SERMON  XI. 


HOW  A  MAN'S  CONDUCT  COMES  HOME  TO  HIM. 

Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 
ington. 

"  The  backslider  in  heart  shall  be  filled  with  his  own  ways  :  and  a 
good  man  shall  be  satisfied. — Proverbs  xiv.  14. 

A  common  principle  is  here  laid  down  and  declared 
to  be  equally  true  in  reference  to  two  characters,  who  in 
other  respects  are  a  contrast.  Men  are  affected  by  the 
course  which  they  pursue ;  for  good  or  bad  their  own  con- 
duct comes  home  to  them.  The  backslider  and  the  good 
man  are  very  different,  but  in  each  of  them  the  same  rule  is 
exemplified — they  are  both  filled  by  the  result  of  their  lives. 
The  backslider  becomes  filled  by  that  which  is  within  him, 
as  seen  in  his  life,  and  the  good  man  also  is  filled  by  that 
which  grace  implants  within  his  soul.  The  evil  leaven  in 
the  backslider  leavens  his  entire  being  and  sours  his  exist- 
ence, while  the  gracious  fountain  in  the  sanctified  believer 
saturates  his  whole  manhood,  and  baptizes  his  entire  life. 
In  each  case  the  fulness  arises  from  that  which  is  within  the 
man,  and  is  in  its  nature  like  the  man's  character ;  the  ful- 
ness of  the  backslider's  misery  will  come  out  of  his  own  ways, 
and  the  fulness  of  the  good  man's  content  will  spring^out  of 
the  love  of  God  which  is  shed  abroad  in  his  heart. 


204     how  a  man's  conduct  comes  home  to  him. 

The  meaning  of  this  passage  will  come  out  better  if  we 
begin  with  an  illustration.  Here  are  two  pieces  of  sponge, 
and  we  wish  to  fill  them  :  you  shall  place  one  of  them  in 
a  pool  of  foul  water,  it  will  be  filled,  and  filled  with  that 
which  it  lies  in  ;  you  shall  put  the  other  sponge  into  a 
pure  crystal  stream,  and  it  will  also  become  full,  full  of 
the  element  in  which  it  is  placed.  The  backslider  lies  asoak 
in  the  dead  sea  of  his  own  ways,  and  the  brine  fills  him  ; 
the  good  man  is  plunged  like  a  pitcher  into  "  Siloa's  brook, 
which  flows  hard  by  the  oracle  of  God,"  and  the  river  of  the 
water  of  life  fills  him  to  the  brim.  A  wandering  heart  will 
be  filled  with  sorrow,  and  a  heart  confiding  in  the  Lord 
will  be  satisfied  with  joy  and  peace.  Or  take  two  farm- 
steads ;  one  farmer  sows  tares  in  his  field,  and  in  due  time 
his  barns  are  filled  therewith ;  another  sows  wheat,  and 
his  garners  are  stored  with  precious  grain.  Or  follow  out 
our  Lord's  parable  :  one  builder  places  his  frail  dwelling 
on  the  sand,  and,  when  the  tempest  rages,  he  is  swept  away 
in  it,  naturally  enough  ;  another  lays  deep  the  foundations 
of  his  house,  and  sets  it  fast  on  a  rock,  and  as  an  equally 
natural  consequence  he  smiles  upon  the  storm,  protected 
by  his  well-founded  dwelling-place.  What  a  man  is  by  sin 
or  by  grace  will  be  the  cause  of  his  sorrow  or  his  satisfaction. 

L  I  shall  take  the  two  characters  without  further  preface, 
and  first  let  us  speak  awhile  about  the  backslider.  This 
is  a  very  solemn  subject,  but  one  which  it  is  needful  to  bring 
before  the  present  audience,  since  we  all  have  some  share 
in  it.  I  trust  there  may  not  be  many  present  who  are  back- 
sliders in  the  worst  sense  of  the  term,  but  very,  very  few 
among  us  are  quite  free  from  the  charge  of  having  back- 
slidden, in  some  measure,  at  some  time  or  other  since  conver- 
sion. Even  those  who  sincerely  love  the  Master  sometimes 
wander,  and  we  all  need  to  take  heed  lest  there  be  in  any 
one  of  us  an  evil  heart  of  unbelief  in  departing  from  the  liv- 
ing God. 


HOW  A  MAN'S  CONDUCT  COMES  HOME  TO  HIM.  205 

There  are  several  kinds  of  persons  who  may  with  more 
or  less  propriety  be  comprehended  under  the  term  "  back- 
sliders," and  these  will  each  in  his  own  measure  be  filled 
with  his  own  ways. 

•  There  are.  first,  apostates,  those  who  unite  themselves 
with  the  church  of  Christ,  and  act  for  a  time  as  if  they  were 
subjects  of  a  real  change  of  heart.  These  persons  are  fre- 
quently very  zealous  for  a  season,  and  may  become  promi- 
nent, if  not  eminent,  in  the  church  of  God.  They  did  run 
well,  like  those  mentioned  by  the  apostle,  but  by  some  means 
they  are,  first  of  all,  hindered,  and  slacken  their  pace  ;  after 
that  they  linger  and  loiter,  and  leave  the  crown  of  the  cause- 
way for  the  side  of  the  road.  By-and-by  in  their  hearts  they 
go  back  into  Egypt  and  at  last,  finding  an  opportunity  to  re- 
turn, they  break  loose  from  all  the  restraints  of  their  profes- 
sion, and  openly  forsake  the  Lord.  Truly  the  last  end  of 
such  men  is  worse  than  the  first.  Judas  is  the  great  type  of 
these  pre-eminent  backsliders.  Judas  was  a  professed  be- 
liever in  Jesus,  a  follower  of  the  Lord,  a  minister  of  the 
gospel,  an  apostle  of  Christ,  the  trusted  treasurer  of  the 
college  of  the  apostles,  and  after  all  turned  out  to  be  the 
"  son  of  perdition  "  who  sold  his  Master  for  thirty  pieces 
of  silver.  He  ere  long  was  filled  with  his  own  ways,  for, 
tormented  with  remorse,  he  threw  down  the  blood-money  he 
had  so  dearly  earned,  hanged  himself,  and  went  to  his  own 
place.  The  story  of  Judas  has  been  written  over  and 
over  again  in  the  lives  of  other  traitors.  We  have  heard 
of  Judas  as  a  deacon,  and  as  an  elder  ;  we  have  heard  Judas 
preach,  we  have  read  the  works  of  Judas  the  bishop,  and 
seen  Judas  the  missionary.  Judas  sometimes  continues 
in  his  profession  for  many  years,  but,  sooner  or  later,  the 
true  character  of  the  man  is  discovered  ;  his  sin  returns 
upon  his  own  head,  and  if  he  "does  not  make  an  end  of 
himself,  I  do  not  doubt  but  what,  even  in  this  life,  he  often 
lives  in  such  horrible  remorse  that  his  soul  would  choose 


206       HOW  A  MAN  S  CONDUCT  COMES  HOME  TO  HIM. 

strangling  rather  than  life.  He  has  gathered  the  grapes 
of  Gomorrah,  and  he  has  to  drink  the  wine  ;  he  has  planted  I 
a  bitter  tree,  and  he  must  eat  the  fruit  thereof.  Oh  sirs, 
may  none  of  you  betray  your  Lord  and  Master.  God  grant 
I  never  may.  "  Traitor  !  Traitor  !  "  Shall  that  ever  be 
written  across  your  brow  ?  You  have  been  baptized  into  the 
name  of  the  adorable  Trinity,  you  have  eaten  the  tokens  of 
the  Kedeemer's  body  and  blood,  you  have  sung  the  songs  of 
Zion,  you  have  stood  forward  to  pray  in  the  midst  of  the 
people  of  God,  and  will  you  act  so  base  a  part  as  to  betray 
your  Lord  ?  Shall  it  ever  be  said  of  you,  "  Take  him  to  the 
place  from  whence  he  came,  for  he  is  a  traitor  ?  "  I  cannot 
conceive  of  anything  more  ignominious  than  for  a  soldier  to 
be  drummed  out  of  a  regiment  of  Her  Majesty's  soldiers,  but 
what  must  it  be  to  be  cast  out  of  the  host  of  God  !  What 
must  it  be  to  be  set  up  as  the  target  of  eternal  shame  and 
everlasting  contempt  for  having  crucified  the  Lord  afresh, 
and  put  him  to  an  open  shame  !  How  shameful  will  it  be 
to  be  branded  as  an  apostate  from  truth  and  holiness,  from 
Christ  and  his  ways.  Better  never  to  have  made  a  profession  I 
than  to  have  belied  it  so  wretchedly,  and  to  have  it  said  of 
us,  "  it  is  happened  unto  them  according  to  the  true  proverb, 
the  dog  is  turned  to  his  own  vomit  again  ;  and  the  sow  that 
was  washed  to  her  wallowing  in  the  mire."  Of  such  has 
John  said,  "  They  went  out  from  us,  but  they  were  not  of 
us  ;  for  if  they  had  been  of  us,  they  would  no  doubt  have 
continued  with  us  ;  but  they  went  out,  that  they  might 
be  made  manifest  that  they  were  not  all  of  us." 

This  title  of  backslider  applies  also  to  another  class,  not 
so  desperate  but  still  most  sad,  of  which  not  Judas  but 
David  may  serve  as  the  type  :  we  refer  to  backsliders  wlio  go 
into  open  sin.  There  are  men  who  descend  from  purity  I 
to  careless  living,  and  from  careless  living  to  indulgence 
of  the  flesh,  and  from  indulgence  of  the  flesh  in  little  mat- 
ters into  known  sin,  and  from  one  sin  to  another  till  they 


HOW  A  MAN'S  CONDUCT  COMES  HOME  TO  HIM.  207 

plunge  into  uncleanness.  They  have  heen  born  again, 
and  therefore  the  trembling  and  almost  extinct  life  within 
must  and  shall  revive  and  bring  them  to  repentance  ;  they 
will  come  back  weary,  weeping,  humbled,  and  broken- 
hearted, and  they  will  be  restored,  but  they  will  never  be 
what  they  were  before  ;  their  voices  will  be  hoarse,  like  that 
of  David  after  his  crime,  for  he  never  again  sung  so  jubi- 
lantly as  in  his  former  days.  Life  will  be  more  full  of 
trembling  and  trial,  and  manifest  less  of  buoyancy  and  joy 
of  spirit.  Broken  bones  make  hard  travelling,  and  even 
when  they  are  set  they  are  very  subject  to  shooting  pains 
when  ill  weathers  are  abroad.  I  may  be  addressing  some 
of  this  sort  this  morning,  and  if  so  I  would  speak  with  much 
faithful  love.  Dear  brother,  if  you  are  now  following  Jesus 
afar  off,  you  will,  ere  long,  like  Peter,  deny  him.  Even 
though  you  will  obtain  mercy  of  the  Lord,  yet  the  text 
will  certainly  be  fulfilled  in  you,  and  you  will  be  "  filled 
with  your  own  ways."  As  certainly  as  Moses  took  the 
golden  calf  and  ground  it  into  powder,  and  then  mixed 
it  with  the  water  which  the  sinful  Israelites  had  to  drink, 
till  they  all  tasted  the  grit  in  their  mouths,  so  will  the  Lord 
do  with  you  if  you  are  indeed  his  child  :  he  will  take  your 
idol  of  sin  and  grind  it  to  powder,  and  your  life  shall  be 
made  bitter  with  it  for  years  to  come.  When  the  gall  and 
wormwood  are  most  manifest  in  the  cup  of  life  it  will  be 
a  mournful  thing  to  feel  "  I  procured  this  unto  myself  by 
my  shameful  folly."  0  Lord,  hold  thou  us  up,  and  keep  us 
from  falling  by  little  and  little,  lest  we  plunge  into  overt  sin 
and  continue  in  it  for  a  season  ;  for  surely  the  anguish  which 
comes  of  such  an  evil  is  terrible  as  death  itself.  If  David 
could  rise  from  his  grave  and  appear  before  you  with  his 
face  seamed  with  sorrow  and  his  brow  wrinkled  with  his 
many  griefs,  he  would  say  to  you  "  Keep  your  hearts  with 
all  diligence,  lest  ye  bring  woe  upon  yourselves.  Watch 
unto  prayer,  and  guard  against  the  beginnings  of  sin  lest 


208     how  a  man's  conduct  comes  home  to  him. 

your  bones  wax  old  through  your  roarings,  and  your  moist- 
ure be  turned  into  the  drought  of  summer."  0  beware  of  a 
wandering  heart,  for  it  will  be  an  awful  thing  to  be  filled 
with  your  own  backslidings. 

But  there  is  a  third  sort  of  backsliding,  and  I  am  afraid  a 
very  large  number  of  us  have  at  times  come  under  the  title — 
I  mean  those  zvho  in  any  measure  or  degree,  even  for  a  very 
little  time,  decline  from  the  point  which  they  have  reached. 
Perhaps  such  a  man  hardly  ought  to  be  called  a  backslider, 
because  it  is  not  his  predominant  character,  yet  he  back- 
slides. If  he  does  not  believe  as  firmly,  and  love  as  in- 
tensely, and  serve  as  zealously  as  he  formerly  did,  he  has  in 
a  measure  backslidden,  and  any  measure  of  backsliding,  be  it 
less  or  be  it  more,  is  sinful,  and  will  in  proportion  as  it  is 
real  backsliding  fill  us  with  our  own  ways.  If  you  only  sow 
two  or  three  seeds  of  the  thistle  there  will  not  be  so  many  of 
the  ill  weeds  on  your  farm  as  if  you  had  emptied  out  a  whole 
sack,  but  still  there  will  be  enough  and  more  than  enough. 
Every  little  backsliding,  as  men  call  it,  is  a  great  mischief  ; 
every  little  going  back  even  in  heart  from  God,  if  it  never 
comes  to  words  or  deeds,  yet  will  involve  us  in  some  measure 
of  sorrow.  If  sin  were  clean  removed  from  us  sorrow  would 
be  removed  also,  in  fact  we  should  be  in  heaven,  since  a  state 
of  perfect  holiness  must  involve  perfect  blessedness.  Sin,  in 
any  degree,  will  bear  its  own  fruit,  and  that  fruit  will  be  sure 
to  set  our  teeth  on  edge  ;  it  is  ill  therefore  to  be  a  backslid  el- 
even in  the  least  degree. 

Having  said  so  much,  let  me  now  continue  to  think  of  the 
last  two  kinds  of  backsliders,  and  leave  out  the  apostate. 
Let  us  first  read  his  name,  and  then  let  us  read  his  history, 
we  have  both  in  our  text. 

The  first  part  of  his  name  is  "  backslider."  He  is  not  a 
back  runner,  nor  a  back  leaper,  but  a  backslider,  that  is  to 
say  he  slides  back  with  an  easy,  effortless  motion,  softly, 
quietly,  perhaps  unsuspected  by  himself  or  anybody  else. 


HOW  A  MAN'S  CONDUCT  COMES  HOME  TO  HIM.  209 

The  Christian  life  is  very  much  like  climbing  a  hill  of  ice. 
You  cannot  slide  up,  nay,  you  have  to  cut  every  step  with  an 
ice  axe  ;  only  with  incessant  labor  in  cutting  and  chipping  can 
you  make  any  progress  ;  you  need  a  guide  to  help  you,  and 
you  are  not  safe  unless  you  are  fastened  to  the  guide,  for  you 
may  slip  into  a  crevasse.  Nobody  ever  slides  up,  but  if  great 
care  be  not  taken  they  will  slide  down,  slide  back,  or  in  other 
words  backslide.  This  is  very  easily  done.  If  you  want  to 
know  how  to  backslide,  the  answer  is  leave  off  going  forward 
and  you  will  slide  backward,  cease  going  upward  and  you 
will  go  downward  of  necessity,  for  stand  still  you  never  can. 
To  lead  us  to  backslide,  Satan  acts  with  us  as  engineers 
do  with  a  road  down  the  mountain's  side.  If  they  desire  to 
carry  the  road  from  yonder  alp  right  down  into  the  valley 
far  below,  they  never  think  of  making  the  road  plunge  over 
a  precipice,  or  straight  down  the  face  of  the  rock,  for  nobody 
would  ever  use  such  a  road  ;  but  the  road-makers  wind  and 
twist.  See,  the  track  descends  very  gently  to  the  right,  you 
can  hardly  see  that  it  does  run  downwards  ;  anon  it  turns  to 
the  left  with  a  small  incline,  and  so,  by  turning  this  way  and 
then  that,  the  traveller  finds  himself  in  the  vale  below. 
Thus  the  crafty  enemy  of  souls  fetches  saints  down  from 
their  high  places  ;  whenever  he  gets  a  good  man  down  it 
is  usually  by  slow  degrees.  Now  and  then,  by  sudden  oppor- 
tunity and  strong  temptation,  the  Christian  man  has  been 
plunged  right  from  the  pinnacle  of  the  temple  into  the 
dungeon  of  despair  in  a  moment,  but  it  is  not  often  the 
case ;  the  gentle  decline  is  the  devil's  favorite  piece  of  engi- 
neering, and  he  manages  it  with  amazing  skill.  The  soul 
scarcely  knows  it  is  going  down,  and  it  seems  to  be  main- 
taining the  even  tenor  of  its  way,  but  ere  long  it  is  far  below 
the  line  of  peace  and  consecration.  Our  dear  brother,  Dr. 
i  Arnot,  of  the  Free  Church.,  illustrates  this  very  beautifully 
by  supposing  a  balance.  This  is  the  heavy  scale  loaded  with 
seeds,  and  the  other  is  high  in  the  air.    One  morning  you  are 


210     how  a  man's  conduct  comes  home  to  him. 

very  much  surprised  to  find  that  what  had  been  the  heavier 
scale  is  aloft,  while  the  other  has  descended.  You  do  not 
understand  it  till  you  discover  that  certain  little  insects  had 
silently  transferred  the  seeds  one  by  one.  At  first  they  made 
no  apparent  change,  by-and-by  there  was  a  little  motion, 
one  more  little  seed  was  laid  in  the  scales  and  the  balance 
turned  in  a  moment.  Thus  silently  the  balance  of  a  man's 
soul  may  be  affected,  and  everything  made  ready  for  that  owe 
temptation  by  which  the  fatal  turn  is  made,  and  the  man 
becomes  an  open  transgressor.  Apparently  insignificant 
agencies  may  gradually  convey  our  strength  from  the  right 
side  to  the  wrong  by  grains  and  half-grains,  till  at  last  the 
balance  is  turned  in  the  actual  life  and  we  are  no  more  fit  to 
be  numbered  with  the  visible  saints  of  G-od. 

Think  again  of  this  man's  name.  He  is  a  "  backslider," 
but  what  from  ?  He  is  a  man  who  knows  the  sweetness 
of  the  things. of  God  and  yet  leaves  off  feeding  upon  them. 
He  is  one  who  has  been  favored  to  wait  at  the  Lord's  own 
table,  and  yet  he  deserts  his  honorable  post,  backslides  from 
the  things  which  he  has  known,  and  felt,  and  tasted,  and 
handled,  and  rejoiced  in — things  that  are  the  priceless  gifts 
of  God.  He  is  a  backslider  from  the  condition  in  which  he 
has  enjoyed  a  heaven  below ;  he  is  a  backslider  from  the 
love  of  him  who  bought  him  with  his  blood  ;  he  slides  back 
from  the  wounds  of  Christ,  from  the  works  of  the  Eternal 
Spirit,  from  the  crown  of  life  which  hangs  over  his  head,  and 
from  a  familiar  intercourse  with  God  which  angels  might 
envy  him.  Had  he  not  been  so  highly  favored  he  could  not 
have  been  so  basely  wicked.  0  fool  and  slow  of  heart  to  slide 
from  wealth  to  poverty,  from  health  to  disease,  from  liberty 
to  bondage,  from  light  to  darkness  :  from  the  love  of  God, 
from  abiding  in  Christ,  and  from  the  fellowship  of  the  Holy 
Ghost  into  lukewarmness,  worldliness,  and  sin. 

The  text,  however  gives  the  man's  name  at  greater  length, 
"  The  backslider  in  heart."    Now  the  heart  is  the  fountain 


HOW  A  MAN'S  CONDUCT  COMES  HOME  TO  HTM.  211 

of  evil.  A  man  need  not  be  a  backslider  in  action  to  get  the 
text  fulfilled  in  him,  he  need  only  be  a  backslider  in  heart. 
All  backsliding  begins  within,  begins  with  the  heart's  grow- 
ing lukewarm,  begins  with  the  love  of  Christ  being  less 
powerful  in  the  soul.  Perhaps  you  think  that  so  long  as 
backsliding  is  confined  to  the  heart  it  does  not  matter  much  ; 
but  consider  for  a  minute,  and  you  will  confess  your  error. 
If  you  went  to  your  physician  and  said,  "  Sir,  I  feel  a  severe 
pain  in  my  body,"  would  you  feel  comforted  if  he  replied 
"  There  is  no  local  cause  for  your  suffering,  it  arises  entirely 
from  disease  of  the  heart "  ?  Would  you  not  be  far  more 
alarmed  than  before  ?  A  case  is  serious  indeed  when  it 
involves  the  heart.  The  heart  is  hard  to  reach  and  difficult 
to  understand,  and  moreover  it  is  so  powerful  over  the  rest 
of  the  system,  and  has  such  power  to  injure  all  the  members 
of  the  body,  that  a  disease  in  the  heart  is  an  injury  to  a  vital 
organ,  a  pollution  of  the  springs  of  life.  A  wound  there  is  a 
thousand  wounds,  a  complicated  wounding  of  all  the  members 
at  a  stroke.  Look  ye  well  then  to  your  hearts,  and  pray,  "  0 
Lord  cleanse  thou  the  secret  parts  of  our  spirit  and  preserve 
us  to  thy  eternal  kingdom  and  glory  ! " 

Now  let  us  read  this  man's  history — "he  shall  be  filled 
with  his  own  ways."  From  which  it  is  clear  that  he  falls 
into  ways  of  his  own.  When  he  was  in  his  right  state  he 
followed  the  Lord's  ways,  he  delighted  himself  in  the  law  of 
the  Lord,  and  he  gave  him  the  desire  of  his  heart  ;  but  now 
he  has  ways  of  his  own,  which  he  prefers  to  the  ways  of  God. 
And  what  comes  of  this  perverseness  ?  Does  he  prosper? 
No  ;  he  is  before  long  filled  with  his  own  ways  ;  we  will  see 
what  that  means. 

The  first  kind  of  fulness  with  his  own  ways  is  absorption 
in  his  carnal  pursuits.  He  has  not  much  time  to  spend  upon 
religion  ;  he  has  other  things  to  attend  to.  If  you  speak  to 
him  of  the  deep  things  of  God  he  is  weary  of  you,  and  even 
of  the  daily  necessaries  of  godliness  he  has  no  care  to  hear 


212     how  a  man's  conduct  comes  home  to  him. 

much,  except  at  service  time.  He  has  his  business  to  see  to, 
or  he  has  to  go  out  to  a  dinner  party,  or  a  few  friends  are 
coming  to  spend  the  evening  :  in  any  case,  his  answer  to  you 
is  "  I  pray  thee  have  me  excused."  Now,  this  pre-occupation 
with  trifles  is  always  mischievous,  for  when  the  soul  is  filled 
with  chaff  there  is  no  room  left  for  wheat ;  when  all  your 
mind  is  taken  up  with  frivolities,  the  weighty  matters  of 
eternity  cannot  enter.  Many  professed  Christians  spend  far 
too  much  time  in  amusements,  which  they  call  recreation, 
but  which,  I  fear,  is  far  rather  a  redestruction  than  a  recrea- 
tion. The  pleasures,  cares,  pursuits,  and  ambitions  of  the 
world  swell  in  the  heart  when  they  once  enter,  and  by-and- 
by  they  fill  it  completely.  Like  the  young  cuckoo  in  the 
sparrow's  nest,  worldliness  grows  and  grows  and  tries  its  best 
to  cast  out  the  true  owner  of  the  heart.  Whatever  your  soul 
is  full  of,  if  it  be  not  full  of  Christ,  it  is  an  evil  case. 

Then  backsliders  generally  proceed  a  stage  further,  and 
become  full  of  their  own  ways  by  beginning  to  pride  them- 
selves npon  their  condition  and  to  glory  in  their  shame. 
Not  that  they  really  are  satisfied  at  heart,  on  the  contrary, 
they  have  a  suspicion  that  things  are  not  quite  as  they  ought 
to  be,  and  therefore  they  put  oil  a  bold  front,  and  try  to 
deceive  themselves  and  others.  It  is  rather  dangerous  to  tell 
them  of  their  faults,  for  they  will  not  accept  your  rebuke, 
but  will  defend  themselves,  and  even  carry  the  war  into  your 
camp.  They  will  say,  "Ah,  you  are  puritanical,  strict,  and 
straight-laced,  and  your  manners  and  ways  do  mischief  rather 
than  good."  They  would  not  bring  np  their  children  as  you 
do  yours,  so  they  say.  Their  mouths  are  very  full  because 
their  hearts  are  empty,*and  they  talk  very  loudly  in  defence 
of  themselves,  because  their  conscience  has  been  making 
a  great  stir  within  them.  They  call  sinful  pleasure  a  little 
unbending  of  the  bow,  greed  is  prudence,  covetousness  is 
economy,  and  dishonesty  is  cleverness.  It  is  dreadful  to 
think  that  men  who  know  better  should  attempt  thus  to 


HOW  A  MAN'S  CONDUCT  COMES  HOME  TO  HIM.  213 

excuse  themselves.  Generally  the  warmest  defender  of  a 
sinful  practice  is  the  man  who  has  the  most  qualms  of  con- 
science about  it.  He  himself  knows  that  he  is  not  living  as 
he  should,  but  he  does  not  intend  to  cave  in  just  yet,  nor  at 
all  if  he  can  help  it.  He  is  filled  with  his  ways  in  a  boasted 
self-content  as  to  them. 

Ere  long  this  fulness  reaches  another  stage,  for  if  the 
backslider  is  a  gracious  man  at  all,  he  encounters  chastise- 
ment, and  that  from  a  rod  of  his  own  making.  A  considera- 
ble time  elapses  before  you  can  eat  bread  of  your  own  grow- 
ing :  the  ground  must  be  ploughed  and  sown,  and  the  wheat 
has  to  come  up,  to  ripen  and  to  be  reaped,  and  threshed  and 
ground  in  the  mill,  and  the  flour  must  be  kneaded  and 
baked  in  the  oven  ;  but  the  bread  comes  to  the  table  and  is 
eaten  at  last.  Even  so  the  backslider  must  eat  of  the  fruit 
of  his  own  ways.  <£Be  not  deceived;  God  is  not  mocked, 
whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall  be  also  reap."  Now 
look  at  the  backslider  reaping  the  fruit  of  his  ways.  He 
neglected  prayer,  and  when  he  tries  to  pray  he  cannot  ;  his 
powers  of  desire,  emotion,  faith,  and  entreaty  have  failed  : 
he  kneels  awhile,  but  he  cannot  pray  ;  the  Spirit  of  supplica- 
tions is  grieved,  and  no  longer  helps  his  infirmities.  He 
reaches  down  his  Bible  ;  he  commences  to  read  a  chapter, 
but  he  has  disregarded  the  word  of  God  so  long  that  he  fiuds 
it  to  be  more  like  a  dead  letter  thau  a  living  voice,  though  it 
used  to  be  a  sweet  book  before  he  became  a  backslider.  The 
minister,  too,  is  altered  ;  he  used  to  hear  him  with  delight ; 
but  now  the  poor  preacher  has  lost  all  his  early  power,  so 
the  backslider  thinks.  Other  people  do  not  think  so,  the 
place  is  just  as  crowded,  there  are  as  many  saints  edified  and 
sinners  saved  as  before  ;  but  the  wanderer  in  heart  began 
criticising,  and  now  he  is  entangled  in  the  habit,  and  he 
criticises  every  thing,  but  never  feeds  upon  the  truth  at  all. 
Like  a  madman  at  table  he  puts  his  fork  into  the  morsel  and 
holds  it  up,  looks  at  it,  finds  fault  with  it,  and  throws  it  on 


214.     how  a  man's  conduct  comes  home  to  him. 

the  floor.  Nor  does  he  act  better  towards  the  saints  in  whose 
company  he  once  delighted  ;  they  are  dull  society  and  he 
shuns  them.  Of  all  the  things  which  bear  upon  his  spiritual 
life  he  is  weary,  he  has  trifled  with  them,  and  now  he  cannot 
enjoy  them.    Hear  him  sing  or  rather  sigh — 

"  Thy  saints  are  comforted,  I  know, 
And  love  thy  house  of  prayer  ; 
I  sometimes  go  where  others  go, 
But  find  no  comfort  there." 

How  can  it  be  otherwise  ?  He  is  drinking  water  out  of  his 
own  cistern  and  eating  the  bread  of  which  he  sowed  the 
corn  some  years  ago.    His  ways  have  come  home  to  him. 

Chastisement  also  comes  out  of  his  conduct  in  other  ways. 
He  was  very  worldly  and  gave  gay  parties,  and  his  girls  have 
grown  up  and  grieved  him  by  their  conduct.  He  himself 
went  into  sin,  and  now  that  his  sons  outdo  his  example,  what 
can  he  say  ?  Can  he  wonder  at  anything  ?  Look  at  David's 
case.  David  fell  into  a  gross  sin,  and  soon  Amnon  his  son 
rivalled  him  in  iniquity.  He  murdered  Uriah  the  Hittite, 
and  Absalom  murdered  his  brother  Amnon.  He  rebelled 
against  God,  and  lo,  Absalom  lifted  up  the  standard  of  re- 
volt against  him.  He  disturbed  the  relationships  of  another 
man's  family  in  a  disgraceful  manner,  and  behold  his  own 
family  rent  in  pieces,  and  never  restored  to  peace ;  so  that 
even  when  he  lay  a-dying  he  had  to  say,  "  My  house  is  not 
so  with  God."  He  was  filled  with  his  own  ways;  and  it 
always  will  be  so,  even  if  the  sin  be  forgotten.  If  you  have 
sent  forth  a  dove  or  a  raven  from  the  ark  of  your  soul,  it  will 
come  back  to  you  just  as  you  sent  it  out.  May  God  save  us 
from  being  backsliders  lest  the  smooth  current  of  our  life 
should  turn  into  a  raging  torrent  of  woe. 

The  fourth  stage,  blessed  be  God,  is  at  length  reached  by 
gracious  men  and  women,  and  what  a  mercy  it  is  they  ever 
do  reach  it !    At  last  they  become  filled  with  their  own  ways 


HOW  A  MAN'S  CONDUCT  COMES  HOME  TO  HTM.  215 

in  another  sense  ;  namely,  satiated  and  dissatisfied,  miserable 
and  discontented.  They  sought  the  world  and  they  gained 
it,  but  now  it  has  lost  all  charm  for  them.  They  went  after 
other  loyers,  but  these  deceivers  have  been  false  to  them,  and 
they  wring  their  hands  and  say,  "  Oh  that  I  could  return  to 
my  first  husband  for  it  was  far  better  with  me  then  than 
now."  Many  have  lived  at  a  distance  from  Jesus  Christ, 
but  now  they  can  bear  it  no  longer  ;  they  cannot  be  happy 
till  they  return.  Hear  them  cry  in  the  language  of  the  fifty- 
first  psalm,  "  Eestore  unto  me  the  joy  of  thy  salvation  ;  and 
uphold  me  with  thy  free  spirit."  But  I  tell  you  they  cannot 
get  back  very  easily.  It  is  hard  to  retrace  your  steps  from 
backsliding,  even  if  it  be  but  a  small  measure  of  it ;  but  to 
get  back  from  wanderings  is  hard  indeed,  much  harder  than 
going  over  the  road  the  first  time.  I  believe  that  if  the 
mental  sufferings  of  some  returning  backsliders  could  be 
written  and  faithfully  published  they  would  astound  you, 
and  be  a  more  horrible  story  to  read  than  all  the  torments  of 
the  Inquisition.  What  racks  a  man  is  stretched  upon  who 
has  been  unfaithful  to  his  covenant  with  God  !  What  fires 
have  burned  within  the  souls  of  those  men  who  have  been 
untrue  to  Christ  and  his  cause  !  What  dungeons,  what  grim 
and  dark  prisons  under  ground  have  saints  of  God  lain  in 
who  have  gone  aside  into  By-path  meadow  instead  of  keep- 
ing to  the  king's  highway.  Their  sighs  and  cries,  for  which 
after  all  they  have  learned  to  be  thankful,  are  dolorous  and 
terrible  to  listen  to,  and  make  us  learn  that  he  who  sins  must 
smart,  and  especially  if  he  be  a  child  of  God,  for  the  Lord 
has  said  of  his  people,  "  you  only  have  I  known  of  all  the 
people  of  the  earth,  therefore  I  will  punish  you  for  your 
iniquities."  Whoever  may  go  unchastised,  a  child  of  God 
never  shall :  the  Lord  will  let  his  adversaries  do  a  thousand 
things  and  not  punish  them  in  this  life,  since  he  reserves 
vengeance  for  them  in  the  life  to  come,  but  as  for  his  own 
children,  they  cannot  sin  without  being  visited  with  stripes. 


216     how  a  man's  conduct  comes  home  to  him. 

Beloved  friends,  let  all  go  straight  away  to  the  cross  at 
once  for  fear  we  should  be  backsliders — 

"  Come,  let  us  to  the  Lord  our  God 
With  contrite  hearts  return  ; 
Our  God  is  gracious,  nor  will  leave 
The  penitent  to  mourn." 

Let  ns  confess  every  degree  and  form  of  backsliding,  every 
wandering  of  heart,  every  decline  of  love,  every  wavering  of 
faith,  every  nagging  of  zeal,  every  dnlness  of  desire,  every 
failure  of  confidence.  Behold  the  Lord  says  unto  us,  "  Re- 
turn ; 99  therefore  let  us  return.  Even  if  we  be  not  back- 
sliders it  will  do  us  no  hurt  to  come  to  the  cross  as  penitents, 
indeed,  it  is  well  to  abide  there  evermore,  0  Spirit  of  the 
living  God,  preserve  us  in  believing  penitence  all  our  days. 

II.  I  have  but  little  time  for  the  second  part  of  my  sub- 
ject. Excuse  me  therefore  if  I  do  not  attempt  to  go  into  it 
very  deeply.  As  it  is  true  of  the  backslider  that  he  grows 
at  last  full  of  that  which  is  within  him  and  his  wickedness, 
it  is  true  also  of  the  Christian  that  in  pursuing  the  paths 
of  righteousness  and  the  way  of  faith,  he  becomes  filled  and 
contented  too.  That  which  grace  has  placed  within  him  fills 
him  in  due  time. 

Here  then  we  have  the  good  man's  name  and  history. 

Notice  first,  Ms  name.  It  is  a  very  remarkable  thing 
that  as  a  backslider  if  you  call  out  his  name  will  not  as  a 
rule  answer  to  it,  even  so  a  good  man  will  not  acknowledge 
the  title  here  assigned  him.  Where  is  the  good  man  ?  I 
know  that  every  man  here  who  is  right  before  God  will  pass 
the  question  on,  saying,  "  There  is  none  good  save  One, 
that  is  God."  The  good  man  will  also  question  my  text  and 
say,  "  I  cannot  feel  satisfied  with  myself."  No,  dear  friend, 
but  mind  you  read  the  words  aright.  It  does  not  say,  "satis- 
fied with  himself,"  no  truly  good  man  ever  was  self-satisfied, 
and  when  any  talk  as  if  they  are  self-satisfied  it  is  time  to 


HOW  A  MAN'S  CONDUCT  COMES  HOME  TO  HIM.  217 

doubt  whether  they  know  much  about  the  matter.  All  the 
good  men  I  have  ever  met  with  have  always  wanted  to  be 
better ;  they  have  longed  for  something  higher  than  as  yet 
they  have  reached.  They  would  not  own  to  it  that  they 
were  satisfied,  and  they  certainly  were  by  no  means  satisfied 
with  themselves.  The  text  does  not  say  that  they  are,  but  it 
says  something  that  reads  so  much  like  it  that  care  is  needed. 
Now,  if  I  should  seem  to  say  this  morning  that  a  good  man 
looks  within  and  is  quite  satisfied  with  what  he  finds  there, 
please  let  me  say  at  once,  I  mean  nothing  of  the  sort.  I 
should  like  to  say  exactly  what  the  text  means,  but  I  do  not 
know  quite  whether  I  shall  manage  to  do  it,  except  you  will 
help  me  by  not  misunderstanding  me,  even  if  there  should 
be  a  strong  temptation  to  do  so.  Here  is  the  good  man's 
history,  he  is  "  satisfied  from  himself,"  but  first  I  must  read 
his  name  again,  though  he  does  not  own  to  it,  what  is  he 
good  for  ?  He  says,  "good  for  nothing,"  but  in  truth  he  is 
good  for  much  when  the  Lord  uses  him.  Remember  that  he 
is  good  because  the  Lord  has  made  him  over  again  by  the 
Holy  Spirit.  Is  not  that  good  which  God  makes  ?  When 
he  created  nature  at  the  first  he  said  of  all  things  that  they 
were  very  good  ;  how  could  they  be  otherwise,  since  he  made 
them  ?  So  in  the  new  creation  a  new  heart  and  a  right 
spirit  are  from  G-od,  and  must  be  good.  Where  there  is 
grace  in  the  heart  the  grace  is  good  and  makes  the  heart 
good.  A  man  who  has  the  righteousness  of  Jesus,  and  the 
indwelling  of  the  Holy  Spirit  is  good  in  the  sight  of  God. 

A  good  man  is  on  the  side  of  good.  If  I  were  to  ask, 
who  is  on  the  side  of  good  ?  we  would  not  pass  on  that 
question.  No,  we  would  step  out  and  say  "lam.  I  am 
not  all  I  ought  to  be,  or  wish  to  be,  but  I  am  on  the  side  of 
justice,  truth,  and  holiness  ;  I  would  live  to  promote  good- 
ness, and  even  die  rather  than  become  the  advocate  for 
evil."  And  what  is  the  man  who  loves  that  which  is  good  ? 
Is  he  evil  ?  I  trow  not.  He  who  truly  loves  that  which 
10 


218     how  a  man's  conduct  comes  home  to  him. 

is  good  must  be  in  a  measure  good  himself.  Who  is  he  that 
strives  to  be  good,  and  groans  and  sighs  over  his  failures, 
yea  and  rules  his  daily  life  by  the  laws  of  God  ?  Is  he  not 
one  of  the  world's  best  men  ?  I  trust  without  self-righteous- 
ness the  grace  of  God  has  made  some  of  us  good  in  this  sense, 
for  what  the  Spirit  of  God  has  made  is  good,  and  if  in  Christ 
Jesus  we  are  new  creatures,  we  cannot  contradict  Solomon, 
nor  criticize  the  Bible  if  it  calls  such  persons  good,  though 
we  dare  not  call  ourselves  good. 

Now,  a  good  man's  history  is  this,  "He  is  satisfied  from 
himself." 

Jhat  means  first,  that  he  is  independent  of  outward 
circumstances.  He  does  not  derive  satisfaction  from  his 
birth,  or  honors,  or  properties  ;  but  that  which  fills  him 
with  content  is  within  himself.    Our  hymn  puts  it  so  truly — 

"  I  need  not  go  abroad  for  joys, 
I  have  a  feast  at  home, 
My  sighs  are  turned  into  songs, 
My  heart  has  ceased  to  roam. 

Down  from  above  the  blessed  Dove 

Is  come  into  my  breast, 
To  witness  thine  eternal  love 

And  give  my  spirit  rest." 

Other  men  must  bring  music  from  abroad  if  they  have  any, 
but  in  the  gracious  man's  bosom  there  lives  a  little  bird  that 
sings  sweetly  to  him.  He  has  a  flower  in  his  own  garden 
more  sweet  than  any  he  could  buy  in  the  market  or  find 
in  the  king's  palace.  He  may  be  poor,  but  still  he  would 
not  change  his  estate  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven  for  all 
the  grandeur  of  the  rich.  His  joy  and  peace  are  not  even 
dependent  upon  the  health  of  his  body,  he  is  often  well 
in  soul  when  sick  as  to  his  flesh  ;  he  is  frequently  full  of 
pain  and  yet  perfectly  satisfied.  He  may  carry  about  with 
him  an  incurable  disease  which  he  knows  will  shorten  and 


HOW  A  MAN'S  CONDUCT  COMES  HOME  TO  HIM. 


219 


eventually  end  bis  life,  but  be  does  not  look  to  tbis  poor  life 
for  satisfaction,  be  carries  tbat  within  bim  which  creates 
immortal  joy  :  the  love  of  G-od  sbed  abroad  in  bis  soul  by 
tbe  Holy  G-host  yields  a  perfume  sweeter  than  the  flowers  of 
Paradise.  The  fulfilment  of  the  text  is  partly  found  in  the 
fact  that  the  good  man  is  independent  of  his  surroundings. 

And  be  is  also  independent  of  tbe  praise  of  others.  The 
backslider  keeps  easy  because  tbe  minister  thinks  well  of 
him  and  Christian  friends  think  well  of  him,  but  tbe  genuine 
Christian  who  is  living  near  to  God  thinks  little  of  the  ver- 
dict of  men.  What  other  people  think  of  him  is  not  his  chief 
concern ;  he  is  sure  that  he  is  a  child  of  God,  be  know**  he 
can  say,  "  Abba,  Father,"  he  glories  that  for  him  to  live 
is  Christ,  and  to  die  is  gain,  and  therefore  he  does  not  need 
the  approbation  of  others  to  buoy  up  his  confidence.  He 
runs  alone,  and  does  not  need,  like  a  weakly  child,  to  be 
carried  in  arms.  He  knows  whom  he  has  believed,  and  bis 
heart  rests  in  Jesus;  thus  he  is  satisfied,  not  from  other 
people  and  from  their  judgment,  but  "from  himself." 

Then,  again,  the  Christian  man  is  content  with  the  well 
of  upspringing  water  of  life  which  the  Lord  has  placed  within 
him.  There,  my  brethren,  up  on  the  everlasting  hills  is  the 
divine  reservoir  of  all-sufficient  grace,  and  down  here  in  our 
bosom  is  a  spring  which  bubbles  up  unto  everlasting  life.  It 
has  been  welling  up  in  some  of  us  these  five-and-twenty  years, 
but  why  is  it  so  ?  The  grand  secret  is  that  there  is  an  un- 
broken connection  between  the  little  spring  within  the  re- 
newed breast  and  that  vast  unf athomed  fount  of  God,  and  be- 
cause of  this  the  well-spring  never  fails ;  in  summer  and  in 
winter  it  continues  to  flow.  And  now  if  you  ask  me  if  I 
am  dissatisfied  with  the  spring  within  my  soul  which  is  fed 
by  tbe  all- sufficiency  of  God,  I  reply,  no,  I  am  not.  If  you 
could  by  any  possibility  cut  the  connection  between  my  soul 
and  my  Lord  I  should  despair  altogether,  but  as  long  as  none 
can  separate  me  from  the  love  of  God,  which  is  in  Christ 


220     how  a  man's  conduct  comes  home  to  him. 

Jesus  our  Lord,  I  am  satisfied  and  at  rest.  Like  Naphtali  we 
are  "  satisfied  with  favor  and  full  of  the  blessing  of  the  Lord.7' 
Faith  is  in  the  good  man's  heart  and  he  is  satisfied  with 
what  faith  brings  him,  for  it  conveys  to  him  the  perfect  pardon 
of  his  sin.  Faith  brings  him  nearer  to  Christ.  Faith  brings 
him  adoption  into  the  family  of  God.  Faith  secures  him 
conquest  over  temptation.  Faith  procures  for  him  every- 
thing he  requires.  He  finds  that  by  believing  he  has  all  the 
blessings  of  the  covenant  daily  to  enjoy.  Well  may  he  be 
satisfied  with  such  an  enriching  grace.  The  just  shall  live 
by  faith. 

fti  addition  to  faith,  he  has  another  filling  grace  called 
hope,  which  reveals  to  him  the  world  to  come,  and  gives  him 
assurance  that  when  he  falls  asleep  he  will  sleep  in  Jesus, 
and  that  when  he  awakes  he  will  arise  in  the  likeness  of 
Jesus.  Hope  delights  him  with  the  promise  that  his  body 
shall  rise,  and  that  in  his  flesh  he  shall  see  God.  This  hope 
of  his  sets  the  pearly  gates  wide  open  before  him,  reveals  the 
streets  of  gold,  and  makes  him  hear  the  music  of  the  celestial 
harpers.    Surely  a  man  may  well  be  satisfied  with  this. 

The  godly  heart  is  also  satisfied  with  what  love  brings 
him  ;  for  love  though  it  seem  but  a  gentle  maid,  is  strong 
as  a  giant,  and  becomes  in  some  respects  the  most  potent  of 
all  the  graces.  Love  first  opens  wide  herself  like  the  flowers 
in  the  sunshine,  and  drinks  in  the  love  of  God,  and  then  she 
joys  in  God  and  begins  to  sing  : — 

"  I  am  so  glad  that  Jesus  loves  ine." 

She  loves  Jesus,  and  there  is  such  an  interchange  of  delight 
between  the  love  of  her  soul  to  Christ  and  the  love  of  Christ 
to  her,  that  heaven  itself  can  scarce  be  sweeter.  He  who 
knew  this  deep  mysterious  love  will  be  more  than  filled  with 
it,  he  will  need  to  be  enlarged  to  hold  the  bliss  which  it  cre- 
ates. The  love  of  Jesus  is  known,  but  yet  it  passeth  knowl- 
edge.   It  fills  the  entire  man,  so  that  he  lias  no  room  for  the 


HOW  A  MAN'S  CONDUCT  COMES  HOME  TO  HIM.  221 

idolatrous  love  of  the  creature,  he  is  satisfied  with  himself, 
and  asks  no  other  joy. 

Beloved,  when  the  good  man  is  enabled  by  divine  grace 
to  live  in  obedience  to  God,  he  must,  as  a  necessary  conse- 
quence, enjoy  peace  of  mind.  His  hope  is  alone  fixed  on 
Jesus,  but  a  life  which  evidences  his  possession  of  salvation 
casts  many  a  sweet  ingredient  into  his  cup.  He  who  takes 
the  yoke  of  Christ  upon  him  and  learns  of  him  finds  rest 
unto  his  soul.  When  we  keep  his  commandments  we  con- 
sciously enjoy  his  love,  which  we  could  not  do  if  we  walked 
in  opposition  to  his  will.  To  know  that  you  have  acted 
from  a  pure  motive,  to  know  that  you  have  done  the  right  is 
a  grand  means  of  full  content.  What  matters  the  frown  of 
foes  or  the  prejudice  of  friends,  if  the  testimony  of  a  good 
conscience  is  heard  within  ?  We  dare  not  rely  upon  our 
own  works,  neither  have  we  had  any  desire  or  need  to  do  so, 
for  our  Lord  Jesus  has  saved  us  everlastingly  ;  still,  "Our 
rejoicing  is  this,  the  testimony  of  our  conscience,  that  in 
simplicity  and  godly  sincerity,  not  with  fleshly  wisdom,  but 
by  the  grace  of  God,  we  have  hnl  our  conversation  in  the 
world." 

The  Christian  needs  to  maintain  unbroken  fellowship 
with  Jesus,  his  Lord,  if  he  would  be  good  as  a  soldier  of 
Christ,  but  if  his  communion  be  broken  his  satisfaction  will 
depart.  If  Jesus  be  within  we  shall  b<3  satisfied  from  within, 
but  not  else  ;  if  our  fellowship  with  him  be  kept  up,  and  it 
may  be  from  day  to  ^day,  and  month  to  month,  and  year  to 
year  (and  why  should  it  ever  be  snapped  at  all),  then  the 
satisfaction  will  continue,  and  the  soul  will  continue  to  be 
full  even  to  the  brim  with  the  bliss  which  God  alone  can 
give.  If  we  are  by  the  Holy  Spirit  made  to  be  abundant 
in  labor  or  patient  in  suffering,  if,  in  a  word,  we  resign  our- 
selves fully  up  to  God,  we  shall  find  a  fulness  of  his  grace 
placed  within  ourselves.  An  enemy  compared  some  of  us  to 
cracked  vessels,  and  we  may  humbly  accept  the  description. 


222     how  a  man's  conduct  comes  home  to  him. 

We  do  find  it  difficult  to  retain  good  things,  they  run  away 
from"  our  leaking  pitchers  ;  but  I  will  tell  how  a  cracked 
pitcher  can  be  kept  continually  full.  Put  it  in  the  bottom 
of  an  ever-flowing  river,  and  it  must  be  full.  Even  so 
though  we  are  leaking  and  broken,  if  we  abide  in  the  love 
of  Christ  we  shall  be  filled  with  his  fulness.  Such  an  expe- 
rience is  possible  ;  we  may  be 

"  Plunged  in  the  Godhead's  deepest  sea, 
And  lost  in  his  immensity." 

Then  we  shall  be  full,  full  to  running  over  ;  as  the  Psalmist 
says  "  my  cup  runneth  over."  The  man  who  walks  in  God's 
ways,  obediently  resting  wholly  upon  Christ,  looking  for 
all  his  supplies  to  the  great  eternal  deeps,  that  is  the  man 
who  will  be  filled,  filled  with  the  very  things  which  he  has 
chosen  for  his  own,  filled  with  those  things  which  are  his 
daily  delight  and  desire.  Well  may  the  faithful  believer 
be  filled,  for  he  has  eternity  to  fill  him — The  Lord  has  loved 
him  with  an  everlasting  love  ;  there  is  the  eternity  past : 
"  The  mountains  shall  depart  and  the  hills  be  removed, 
but  my  covenant  shall  not  depart  from  thee" — there  is 
the  eternity  to  come.  He  has  infinity,  yea  the  infinite  One 
himself,  for  the  Father  is  his  Father,  the  Son  is  his  Saviour, 
the  Spirit  of  Cod  dwells  within  him — the  Trinity  may  well 
fill  the  heart  of  man.  The  believer  has  omnipotence  to  fill 
him,  for  all  power  is  given  unto  Christ,  and  of  that  power 
Christ  will  give  to  us  according  as  we  ljave  need.  Living  in 
Christ  and  hanging  upon  him  from  day  to  day,  beloved,  we 
shall  have  a  "  peace  of  God  which  passeth  all  understanding 
to  keep  our  hearts  and  minds  through  Christ  Jesus."  May 
we  enjoy  this  peace  and  magnify  the  name  of  the  Lord  for 
ever  and  ever.  Amen. 


SERMON  XII. 


THE  PEIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 

Delivebed  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 
ington. 

"  He  that  believeth  on  the  Son  of  God  hath  the  witness  in  himself." — 
1  John,  v.  10. 

It  is  a  part  of  the  theory  of  Kitualism,  that  is  to  say, 
Anglicised  Popery,  that  no  man  can  know  his  sins  forgiven 
unless  he  be  assured  thereof  by  a  priest.  They  tell  us  that 
to  know  ourselves  saved  we  must  either  have  a  revelation 
from  heaven,  which  we  may  not  expect,  or  we  must  wait  till 
the  day  of  judgment,  or  else  some  duly  authorized  "  spiritual 
father"  must  pronounce  us  absolved;  they  cannot  suppose 
any  other  method  of  being  assured  of  forgiveness.  That  is 
the  theory,  and  in  practice  it  comes  to  this,  that  when 
anything  troubles  your  conscience  you  must  make  a  clean 
breast  of  it  to  this,  so  called,  learned  minister,"  alias  parish 
priest,  and  tell  him  whatsoever  things  you  have  done,  an- 
swering all  questions  he  may  choose  to  put  to  you,  whether 
they  be  clean  or  whether  they  be  unclean  ;  and  then  he  will 
give  you  absolution  in  the  name  of  God,  claiming  to  be — 
mark,  I  am  not  saying  what  they  do  not  say,  for  I  quote 
from  one  of  the  most  popular  of  their  manuals,  entitled 
"  Steps  to  the  Altar," — claiming,  I  say,  to  be  "a  trustee 
from  God,  and  commissioned  by  him  as  his  ministerial  dej> 


224:  THE  PKIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 

uty,  to  hear,  and  judge,  and  absolve."  That  is  the  theory, 
a  very  attractive  one,  too,  to  human  nature,  for  man  by 
nature  is  an  idolator,  that  is  to  say,  he  desires  something 
tangible,  and  visible,  to  revere  and  trust  in.  The  old  spirit 
which  cried  out  in  the  wilderness,  "  Make  us  gods  to  go 
before  us,  for  as  for  this  Moses  which  brought  us  up  out  of 
the  land  of  Egypt,  we  know  not  what  has  become  of  him," 
is  still  alive,  and  craves  for  idols,  and  delights  to  find  them 
either  in  the  form  of  priests  or  sacraments.  As  for  faith 
in  the  unseen,  purely  spiritual  worship,  and  simple  reliance 
upon  the  promise  of  God,  these  are  not  according  to  human 
nature,  and  wherever  you  discover  them  they  are  the  gifts  of 
the  Holy  Spirit.  Man's  idolatry  loves  priestcraft,  and  there- 
fore we  should  not  be  astonished  if  Ritualism  were  to  become 
more  and  more  popular,  and  subjugate  the  whole  land. 
Confidence  in  priestly  powers  seems  to  afford  the  soul  an 
easy  way  of  coming  to  an  anchorage.  To  come  direct  to 
Jesus  with  the  whole  heart  needs  thought,  consideration, 
and  heart  work,  but  to  confess  to  a  priest  and  get  his  assur- 
ance of  pardon  is  a  method  much  less  difficult,  and  less 
spiritual,  and  consequently  more  agreeable  to  human  nature. 
"What  need  of  being  born  again  from  above  when  a  little 
water  will  do  it  ?  What  need  of  feeding  upon  Christ  when 
bread  and  wine  are  the  same  thing  ?  What  need  of  the 
witness  from  above  when  every  curate  can  assure  you  that 
you  are  pardoned  ?  What  need,  I  say,  of  the  witness  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  when  every  clerical  person  can  pronounce  you 
absolved  ? 

I  would  in  all  kindness  speak  with  those  who  are  in 
bondage  to  this  delusion,  and  suggest  a  few  questions.  You 
think  it  more  easy  to  believe  in  a  man  appointed  by  God 
than  to  believe  in  Christ  himself  directly,  but  may  there  not 
be  a  doubt  or  two  about  the  man  ?  Is  it  not  possible  that 
he  has  not  been  rightly  ordained,  or  that  he  himself  when  he 
speaks  does  not  mean  what  he  says  ;  and  remember,  every- 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH.  225 

thing  depends  upon  his  ordination  and  intention.  Do  you 
say,  "  Oh,  but  he  is  certificated  by  the  church."  But  are 
there  not  grave  questions  as  to  the  church  ?  Can  apostolical 
succession  be  proved  ?  It  is  the  idlest  of  romances.  The 
church  of  Rome  has  struggled  to  prove  her  own  descent 
from  Peter,  but  fails  at  the  very  beginning,  and  we  may 
be  sure  that  the  Anglican  church  is  still  more  at  sea.  She 
calls  the  Nonconformists  schismatics  in  reference  to  herself, 
but  what  is  she  in  regard  to  the  church  of  Eome  ?  She  has 
no  apostolical  succession,  in  the  sense  in  which  the  expres- 
sion is  ecclesiastically  used,  and  should  be  ashamed  of  setting 
up  the  fraudulent  pretence.  Her  godly  ministers  have  the 
same  apostolical  successor  as  all  true  servants  of  Christ  have, 
and  no  more.  No  man  has  such  a  pedigree  as  to  entitle  him 
to  represent  the  eternal  God,  and  stand  between  the  Father 
and  men's  souls  ;  the  claim  is  as  gross  an  imposition  as  that 
of  the  fortune-teller,  who  pretends  to  prophecy.  Hark  ye, 
my  friends,  have  ye  no  manliness  ?  Does  it  seem  to  you,  as 
it  does  to  me,  to  be  a  monstrously  degrading  thing  that 
you  should  prostrate  yourselves  before  a  man  like  yourselves, 
and  believe  that  he  can  pronounce  the  pardon  of  your  sins  ? 
This  precious  "  Steps  to  the  Altar  "  says  "  let  the  manner  of 
your  confession  be  in  an  humble  posture,  on  your  knees,  as 
being  made  to  God  rather  than  man."  Mark  you  this,  you 
are  to  go  down  on  your  knees  to  the  man  whom  the  State 
appoints  to  superintend  the  religion  of  your  parish.  What  is 
it  but  Brahminism,  mis-labelled  Christianity  ?  The  whole 
drift  of  the  scheme  is  to  elevate  a  clerical  caste,  and  lay 
all  the  rest  of  mankind  at  their  feet.  This  is  the  reverse 
of  the  religion  of  the  New  Testament,  which  says  thai  all 
believers  are  a  royal  priesthood,  made  by  the  Lord  Jesus 
kings  and  priests  unto  God  ?  Is  not  Ritualism  quite  sure  to 
grow  into  Popery,  nay,  is  it  not  full-blown  Popery  already  ? 
Will  it  not  once  again  reduce  the  world  to  slavery  under  an  arch- 
priest  at  Rome  or  Canterbury  if  it  be  allowed  to  have  its  way  ? 
10* 


226 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


And  what  saith  the  Scriptures  ?  "  There  is  one  Mediator 
between  God  and  man,  the  man  Christ  Jesus."  Why  should 
we  set  up  other  mediators,  and  go  to  them  for  absolution, 
when  our  Lord  Jesus  receives  all  who  come  to  him  ?  See 
you  in  the  New  Testament  any  trace  of  such  assumptions  on 
the  part  of  God's  ministers  ?  Does  the  gospel  say,  "  He  that 
believeth  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved,  if  absolved  by  a 
priest  ?"  That  interpolation  is  foreign  to  the  gospel.  "Be- 
lieve in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  and  thou  shalt  be  saved" 
is  the  gospel  according  to  the  Scriptures  :  "  confess  to  the 
priest  and  thou  shalt  be  forgiven  "  is  the  gospel  of  the  Vati- 
can. Everywhere  the  Scripture  calls  man  to  come  into 
personal  contact  with  his  reconciled  God  in  Christ  Jesus. 
The  first  resolution  of  the  awakened  sinner  is,  "I  will  arise 
and  go  unto  my  Father."  It  is  not,  "I  will  arise  and  go 
unto  the  authorized  minister  who  stands  between  me  and 
my  Father ; "  it  is  not,  "  I  will  resort  to  sacraments  and 
ceremonies ;  "  but  "  I  will  go  to  my  Father."  In  fact  the 
whole  object  of  the  gospel  is  to  bring  us  near  to  God  in 
Christ  Jesus,  and  to  put  down  every  interposing  medium. 
He  who  rent  the  veil  of  the  temple  has  ended  this  priestly 
business. 

This  morning  my  business  is  to  show  that  there  is  no 
need  of  a  certificate  from  any  man  as  to  our  being  forgiven, 
for  "he  that  believeth  hath  the  witness  within  himself." 
He  does  not  need  a  new  revelation  ;  he  does  not  need  to 
wait  till  the  day  of  judgment  :  he  is  forgiven,  and  he  knows 
it,  and  knows  it  infallibly  too,  by  a  witness  which  is  within 
himself.  Of  that  I  shall  speak,  and  may  the  Spirit  of  God 
help  us  to  get  at  the  real  truth  ;  yea,  I  would  to  God  that  all 
who  hear  me  this  day  would  believe  in  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
and  have  the  witness  of  his  salvation  in  themselves. 

Let  me,  first  of  all,  say  a  word  or  two  about  the  way 
in  which  we  are  saved,  the  modus  operandi  of  salvation,  as 
we  find  it  described  in  the  Scriptures.    Here  it  is  in  a  nut- 


THE  PKIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


227 


shell.    We  hare  all  broken  God's  law,  and  we  are  justly 

condemned  on  account  of -it.  God  in  infinite  mercy  desiring 
to  save  the  sons  of  men  has  given  his  Son  Jesus  to  stand 
in  the  room,  place,  and  stead  of  as  many  as  believe  in  him. 
Jesus  became  the  substitute  of  his  people,  and  suffered 
in  their  stead,  and  for  them  the  debt  of  punishment  due 
to  God  was  paid  by  Jesus  Christ  upon  the  cross  of  Calvary. 
All  who  believe  in  him  are  thereby  cleared  before  the  bar  of 
divine  justice.  Now,  the  Lord  having  given  his  Son  has 
revealed  this  great  fact  in  his  Word.  Here  it  is  in  this  in- 
spired book — the  full  statement  of  it — to  this  effect,  that  God 
was  in  Christ  reconciling  the  world  unto  himself,  not  imput- 
ing their  trespasses  unto  them,  and  that  whosoever  believeth 
in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  hath  everlasting  life.  This  is 
God's  testimony.  We,  who  are  here  present,  or  at  least 
the  bulk  of  us,  know  that  it  is  God's  testimony,  and  all 
we  have  to  do  in  order  to  realize  the  result  of  Christ's  pas- 
sion is  simply  to  believe  the  testimony  of  God  concerning  it, 
and  rest  upon  it.  The  argument  runs  thus  :  Christ  saveth 
those  who  trust  him  ;  I  trust  him,  and  therefore  I  am  saved. 
Jesus  Christ  suffered  for  the  sins  of  his  people  ;  his  people 
are  known  by  their  believing  in  him  ;  I  believe  in  him,  and 
therefore  he  died  for  my  sins,  and  my  sins  are  blotted  out. 
This  is  the  summary  of  the  transaction.  -  God's  testimony 
concerning  his  Son  is  at  first  believed,  simply  because  God 
says  so,  and  for  no  other  reason  ;  and  then  there  grows 
up  in  the  soul  other  evidence  not  necessary  to  faith,  but 
very  strengthening  to  it, — evidence  which  springs  up  in 
the  soul  as  the  result  of  faith,  and  is  the  witness  referred  to 
in  our  text — "He  that  believeth  hath  the  witness  in  him- 
self." There  is  no  need  for  the  intervention  of  any  second 
or  third  party  here  ;  the  man  has  trusted  and  tried  the 
gospel  for  himself,  and  proved  it  to  be  true  ;  what  service 
can  that  gentleman  in  a  long  coat  render  to  him  ?  What 
more  evidence  can  he  bring  with  his  Prayer-book  or  without 


228 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


it  ?  The  matter  is  as  clear  as  the  sun,  what  need  of  his 
tallow-candles  ? 

We  shall  try  to  answer  three  questions  to-day  by  the 
aid  of  our  text — How  come  we  to  be  believers  f  secondly,  How 
know  we  that  believers  are  saved  f  and  thirdly,  How  know  we 
that  we  are  believers  f 

L  How  come  we  to  be  believers  ?  Beloved  friends,  you 
know  how  faith  arises  in  the  heart  from  the  human  point  of 
view.  We  hear  the  gospel,  we  accept  it  as  the  message  of 
God,  and  we  trust  ourselves  to  it.  So  far  it  is  our  own 
work  ;  and  be  it  remembered  that  in  every  case  faith  is  and 
must  be  the  act  of  man.  The  Holy  Spirit  never  believes  for 
anybody.  Each  man  must  personally  believe.  We  cannot 
be  saved  by  the  faith  of  another,  even  though  that  other 
were  divine  ;  each  one  of  us  must  himself  believe.  But, 
having  said  that,  let  us  remember  that  the  Godward  history 
of  our  believing  is  quite  another  thing,  for  true  faith  is 
always  the  gift  of  God  and  the  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 
The  Holy  Spirit  brings  us  to  perform  the  act  of  faith  by 
which  we  are  saved  ;  and  the  process  is  after  this  manner, 
though  varying  in  different  individuals  : — First,  we  are 
brought  attentively  to  listen  to  the  old,  old  story  of  the  cross. 
We  have  heard  it  a  great  many  times,  perhaps,  but  now 
we  hear  with  an  opened  ear,  anxiously  desiring  to  know  the 
inner  sense.  While  we  are  so  listening,  the  word  commends 
itself  to  us ;  it  awes  us  by  its  majesty  of  holiness,  it  attracts 
us  by  its  beauty  of  love,  and  we  perceive  that  it  is  the  Word 
of  God.  Thus  faith  cometh  by  hearing,  and  hearing  by  the 
Word  of  God.  Attentive  hearers,  earnestly  listening,  very 
seldom  remain  unbelievers  long.  The  superficial  hearer, 
who  is  satisfied  to  sit  through  a  sermon  but  does  not  under- 
stand it,  misses  the  blessing.  The  diligent  reader  of  the 
Bible,  reading  it  with  prayer,  is  very  unlikely  to  remain 
unsaved  ;  before  long  the  Spirit  of  God,  who  works  through 
the  Word,  applies  some  portion  or  other  of  Holy  Scripture 


THE  PKIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


229 


to  the  soul  with  power,  and  the  man  is  brought  to  faith. 
We  believe,  then,  not  because  a  clerical  person,  or  a  crowd 
of  clericals,  assure  us  that  the  Bible  is  inspired,  but  because 
the  Spirit  of  God,  working  with  the  word,  commends  it  to 
our  consciences  and  to  our  understandings,  and  therefore  we 
believe.  You  will  generally  find  that  unbelievers  do  not 
read  the  Bible,  and  do  not  read  the  gospel,  and  how  can 
they  believe  in  him  of  whom  they  have  not  heard  ?  If  they 
will  not  consider  the  gospel  candidly,  how  can  they  expect 
to  believe  it  ? 

Further,  the  Holy  Spirit  is  also  pleased  to  make  us  con- 
scious of  our  sinfulness,  our  danger,  and  our  inability,  and 
this  is  a  great  way  towards  faith  in  Christ ;  for  the  great 
difficulty  in  believing  in  Jesus  is  that  men  believe  in  them- 
selves ;  but  when  they  discover  that  their  lives  which  they 
thought  commendable  are  censurable,  and  when  they  find 
out  that  their  native  strength  is  feebleness  itself,  they  are 
then  prepared  to  believe  in  God's  salvation.  When  a  man 
can  no  longer  rely  upon  himself,  he  cries  to  the  strong 
for  strength.  Thus  the  Spirit  of  God  leads  us  to  faith  by 
driving  us  out  of  self-confidence. 

Moreover,  while  attentively  hearing,  ive  perceive  the  suit- 
ability of  the  gospel  to  our  case.  We  feel  ourselves  sinful, 
and  rejoice  that  our  great  substitute  bore  our  sin,  and  suf- 
fered on  its  account,  and  we  say,  "  That  substitution  is 
full  of  hope  to  me  ;  salvation  by  atonement  is  precisely 
what  I  desire ;  here  can  my  conscience  rest."  We  learn 
that  Jesus  came  to  cleanse  our  nature  as  well  as  to  take 
away  our  guilt,  and  we  say,  "That  also  meets  my  need." 
Studying  the  great  doctrine  of  the  cross,  it  strikes  us  as 
being  full  of  the  wisdom  and  love  of  God,  and  as  suitable 
for  our  case  as  bread  is  suitable  for  hunger,  or  water  for 
thirst ;  and  our  moral  instincts,  by  an  inner  witness  which 
,  we  cannot  further  describe,  leap  to  the  conclusion  that  this 
must  be  true,  and  therefore  we  believe  it.    You  see,  first, 


230 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


we  give  an  attentive  hearing  to  the  gospel,  then  we  receive 
by  the  Spirit  of  God  a  consciousness  of  our  need  of  it,  and 
then  we  discover  the  suitability  of  it  to  meet  our  need  ; 
and  by  that  process  we  are  led  onward  to  genuine  faith  in 
Christ. 

There  is  but  one  more  step,  and  that  is,  ive  accept  Jesus  as 
set  forth  in  the  gospel,  and  place  .all  our  trust  in  him.  He  is 
set  forth  as  the  Saviour  of  mankind,  bringing  life  and  peace 
to  all  who  trust  him,  We  hear  a  voice  that  saith,  "  Whoso- 
ever will,  let  him  come  and  take  the  water  of  life  freely." 
We  see  the  Saviour  himself  standing  with  out-stretched  arms, 
and  crying,  "  If  any  man  thirst,  let  him  come  unto  me  and 
drink  ; "  and  being  assured  of  the  freeness  as  before  we  were 
of  the  suitability  of  the  atonement,  we  accept  it :  and  thus 
we  exercise  the  faith  of  God's  elect.  We  have  gone  through 
a  process  which  has  divorced  us  from  every  other  confidence, 
and  brought  us  to  rest  on  that  which  God  hath  set  forth  to 
be  a  propitiation,  even  the  finished  work,  the  blood  and  right- 
eousness of  Christ. 

When  the  soul  accepts  the  Lord  Jesus  as  Saviour,  she 
believes  in  him  as  God:  for  she  saith,  "How  can  he  have 
offered  so  glorious  an  atonement  had  he  not  been  divine  ? 
How  could  God  set  him  forth  to  make  propitiation  for 
the  sons  of  men  had  he  not  been  equal  to  the  task,  a  task 
requiring  an  infinite  nature  ? "  We  worship  the  Son  of 
God  ;  in  him  we  rest,  and  on  him  we  lean,  and  we  find  in 
him  all  that  we  need.  This  is  why  we  believe,  then,  and  the 
process  is  a  simple  and  logical  one.  The  mysterious  Spirit 
works  us  to  faith,  but  the  states  of  mind  through  which  he 
brings  us  follow  each  other  in  a  beautifully  simple  manner. 

Now,  in  all  this  I  see  no  room  for  the  priest  at  all.  For 
the  preacher  there  is  a  niche,  for  "  how  can  they  hear  with- 
out a  preacher  ? "    But  the  priest  with  his  authority  is  an 
interpolation  ;  like  the  fifth  wheel  of  a  steam-engine,  he  , 
is  of  no  possible  service,  and  a  good  deal  in  the  way.  He 


THE  PBIEST  DISPENSED  WITH, 


231 


deserves  to  be  called  "a  superfluity  of  naughtiness."  God's 
word  convinces  my  reason,  and  God's  Spirit  wins  my  heart 
to  faith  in  Jesus,  what  under  heaven  do  I  need  more  as 
a  reason  for  faith  ?  That  gentleman  with  the  gown  on 
has  no  more  to  do  with  the  business  than  if  he  did  not  exist, 
and  his  intervention  to  tell  me  by  authority  that  the  gospel 
is  true,  and  that  I  am  absolved,  is  as  ridiculous  as  the  con- 
duct of  that  little  African  potentate  who,  as  soon  as  he  has 
eaten  the  few  morsels  of  carrion  that  adorn  his  majestic 
table,  bids  a  herald  proclaim  east,  west,  north,  and  south, 
that  all  other  kings  in  the  world  are  now  permitted  by  his 
gracious  majesty  to  have  their  dinners.  Probably  they  have 
never  heard  of  the  permission,  and  have  suffered  no  evil 
from  being  ignorant  of  it.  Who  is  this  black  fellow  that  he 
should  take  so  much  upon  him  ?  Having  been  brought 
to  rest  in  Jesus  as  my  Saviour  by  a  perfectly  reasonable 
process,  by  a  chain  of  argument  in  which  not  one  link  is 
deficient,  I  care  nothing  whatever  for  any  official  confirma- 
tion from  the  gentleman  in  the  gown,  who  has  no  argument, 
but  bids  me  believe  because  he  has  been  ordained.  I  need 
no  confirmation  of  what  God  speaks.  Twice  two  will  be 
four  whether  the  parish  priest  says  so  or  not,  and  God's 
testimony  is  true  quite  independently  of  all  the  gowns  and 
surplices  in  and  out  of  the  robe-maker's  shop.  If  her  Majesty 
should  give  me  the  title-deeds  of  an  estate,  signing  the  trans- 
fer with  her  own  hand  and  seal,  I  should  smile  at  the  lackey 
who  should  kindly  offer  to  add  his  authority  to  her  Majesty's 
act  and  deed.  Where  the  word  of  a  king  is  there  is  power,  and 
this  is  preeminently  true  where  the  word  of  the  King  of  kings 
is  concerned.  I  have  believed  in  Jesus  Christ  as  he  is  set 
forth  on  the  authority  of  God  himself,  and  who  are  you,  Sir 
Priest,  to  come  between  me  and  God  ?  You  tell  the  peni- 
tent, "  You  are  to  look  upon  the  priest,  as  he  is  trustee  from 
God,  and  commissioned  by  him  as  his  ministerial  deputy,  to 
hear  and  judge  and  absolve  you."    Away  with  such  bias- 


232 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


phemous  falsehood  ;  we  want  no  deputies,  for  we  have 
Christ  himself.    You  and  your  authority  may  go  packing. 

II.  Secondly,  How  know  we  that  believers  are 
saved  ?  for  that  seems  to  be  a  grave  question  with  some. 
"  I  trust  Jesus,  I  believe  in  him  with  all  my  heart,  but  am  I 
saved  ?  "  My  dear  friend,  you  ought  not  to  raise  that  ques- 
tion, for  it  is  finally  settled  by  divine  authority  :  but  as  you 
do  raise  it  let  us  answer  it  for  you  very  briefly.  We  know 
and  are  sure  that  every  believer  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
issaved,  because  God  says  so,  and  is  not  that  enough  ?  God 
declares  in  his  word,  even  in  that  sure  word  of  testimony, 
whereunto  ye  do  well  to  take  heed  as  unto  a  light  that 
shineth  in  a  dark  place,  that  every  believer  in  Jesus  Christ 
is  saved.  The  passages  in  which  this  is  stated  are  far  too 
many  for  us  to  quote  them  all ;  only  let  us  note  that  mem- 
orable one  at  the  close  of  Mark's  gospel,  "  Go  ye  into  all 
the  world,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature.  He 
that  believeth  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved  ;  he  that  believ- 
eth  not  shall  be  damned."  The  believer  is  saved,  you  have 
in  those  verses  God's  word  for  it.  True,  the  believer  is 
-  bound  to  profess  his  faith  by  baptism,  which  follows  upon 
his  faith  ;  but  the  second  sentence  shows  that  the  faith 
is  the  all-important  matter,  for  it  is  added,  "  He  that  believ- 
eth not  shall  be  damned  ;"  faith  being  the  vital  thing  which, 
if  omitted,  will  involve  damnation.  How  the  whole  of  John's 
Gospel  teems  with  this  truth.  Turn  to  the  blessed  third  of 
John,  and  see  how  wondrously  clear  it  is.  In  the  sixteenth 
verse,  for  instance  :  "  For  God  so  loved  the  world,  that  he 
gave  his  only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  in  him 
should  not  perish,  but  have  everlasting  life."  Read  the 
eighteenth  :  "  He  that  believeth  on  him  is  not  condemned, 
but  he  that  believeth  not  is  condemned  already,  because  he 
hath  not  believed  in  the  name  of  the  only  begotten  Son 
of  God."  Follow  on  to  the  thirty-sixth  verse:  "He  that 
believeth  on  the  Son  hath  everlasting  life."    Can  anything 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


233 


be  more  plain  and  positive  ?  Assuredly  he  that  believes 
in  Jesus  is  a  saved  man  ?  Turn  to  the  tenth  chapter  of 
Romans.  I  shall  only  give  you  passages  in  which  the  truth 
is  as  conspicuous  as  the  sun  in  the  heavens.  Paul  says  in 
the  fourth  verse  :  "  Christ  is  the  end  of  the  law  for  right- 
eousness to  every  one  that  believeth.  For  Moses  descilbeth 
the  righteousness  which  is  of  the  law,  That  the  man  which 
doeth  those  things  shall  live  by  them.  But  the  righteous- 
ness which  is  of  faith  speaketh  on  this  wise,  Say  not  in  thine 
heart,  Who  shall  ascend  into  heaven  ?  (that  is  to  bring 
Christ  down  from  above  :)  or,  Who  shall  descend  into  the 
deep  ?  (that  is,  to  bring  up  Christ  again  from  the  dead.) 
But  what  saith  it  ?  The  word  is  nigh  thee,  even  in  thy 
mouth,  and  in  thy  heart  :  that  is  the  word  of  faith,  which 
we  preach  ;  that  if  thou  wilt  confess  with  thy  mouth  the 
Lord  Jesus,  and  shalt  believe  in  thine  heart  that  God  hath 
raised  him  from  the  dead  thou  shalt  be  saved."  He  rejects 
all  idea  of  salvation  by  works,  and  lays  all  the  stress  upon 
believing  in  a  risen  Saviour.  To  the  like  purpose  speaks  the 
apostle  in  Romans  i.  16  :  "  For  I  am  not  ashamed  of  the 
gospel  of  Christ :  for  it  is  the  power  of  God  unto  salvation 
to  every  one  that  believeth  ;  to  the  Jew  first,  and  also  to  the 
Greek.  For  therein  is  the  righteousness  of  God  revealed 
from  faith  to  faith  :  as  it  is  written,  The  just  shall  live  by 
faith."  This  indeed,  is  the  great  reason  why  the  Bible  is 
written,  that  we  may  believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  and  have  life 
through  his  name.  So  John  tells  us  in  the  twentieth  chap- 
ter of  his  gospel  and  the  thirtieth  verse.  See  ye  not  then, 
brethren,  if  you  believe  in  Jesus  you  are  saved  certainly,  and 
are  ye  not  sure  that  it  is  so,  because  God  declares  it  ?  If  we 
from  henceforth  had  no  other  witness,  is  not  the  witness  of 
the  Lord  sufficient  ?  It  seems  to  me  to  be  the  essence  of 
unbelief  for  a  man  to  want  a  minister  to  tell  him  that  if 
he  believes  he  is  saved,  when  God  solemnly  affirms  that  it  is 
so.    I  could  not  conceive  myself  so  forsaken  of  God  as  to 


234 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


assume  that  I  could  assure  my  fellow  man  of  his  pardon,  and 
affect  to  pronounce  absolution  by  authority  committed  to  me. 
Surely  this  were  presumption  to  be  answered  for  at  the  last 
great  day.    God  forgive  those  who  are  guilty  of  it.  4 

Again,  we  know  on  the  authority  of  Scripture  that  believ- 
ers are  saved,  because  the  privileges  tvhich  are  ascribed  to  them 
prove  that  they  are  in  a  saved  condition.  Let  us  read  in  John 
again.  John  goes  to  the  very  root  of  every  matter,  and  in 
chapter  i.  12  he  tells  us,  "As  many  as  received  him,  to  them 
gave  he  power  to  become  the  sons  of  God,  even  to  them  that 
believe  on  his  name. "  See,  brethren,  every  one  that  believes 
on  the  name  of  Jesus  is  a  son  of  God,  and  how  can  a  son  of 
God  be  a  lost  soul  ?  Will  he  cast  away  his  own  children  ? 
God  forbid  !  In  the  same  gospel,  chapter  v.  24,  Christ  him- 
self tells  us,  "  Verily,  verily,  I  say  unto  you,  He  that  heareth 
my  word,  and  believeth  on  him  that  sent  me,  hath  everlast- 
ing life,  and  shall  not  come  into  condemnation  ;  but  is 
passed  from  death  unto  life."  He  is  gone  out,  then,  of  the 
region  of  death  and  condemnation  into  that  of  life  and 
acceptance,  and  surely  no  one  will  say  that  such  a  man  is 
not  saved.  Look  at  chapter  vii.  38  :  "  He  that  believeth  on 
me,  as  the  Scripture  hath  said,  out  of  his  belly  shall  flow 
rivers  of  living  water.  This  spake  he  of  the  Spirit  which 
they  that  believe  on  him  should  receive."  So  that  the  Holy 
Spirit  dwells  in  every  believer,  and  where  the  Holy  Spirit 
abides  salvation  is  certainly  enjoyed.  Our  Lord  also  prom- 
ises the  resurrection  to  every  believer.  Read  John  xi.  25, 
that  glorious  passage,  wherein  Jesus  said  to  Martha,  "  I  am 
the  resurrection,  and  the  life  :  he  that  believeth  in  me, 
though  he  were  dead,  yet  shall  he  live  ;  and  whosoever  liveth 
and  believeth  in  me  shall  never  die.  Believest  thou  this  ?  " 
Resurrection  to  eternal  life  is  not  the  portion  of  the  unsaved, 
for  they  "  shall  not  see  life,  but  the  wrath  of  God  abideth 
on  them."  You  see  that  John's  gospel  is  rich  with  this 
precious  doctrine.    Nor  does  he  alone  thus  reveal  the  blessed 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


235 


results  of  faith  :  Paul  also  speaks  of  these  privileges  in  all 
his  epistles.  If  you  turn  to  the  Eomans,  how  full  that  epistle 
is  of  the  same  truth.  "  Therefore,  being  justified  by  faith, 
we  have  peace  with  God  through  Jesus  Christ  onr  Lord  :  by 
whom  also  we  have  access  by  faith  into  this  grace  wherein  we 
stand,  and  rejoice  in  hope  of  the  glory  of  God."  You  re- 
member the  passage  we  read  just  now  in  the  Epistle  of 
John  :  "This  is  the  victory  which  overcometh  the  world, 
even  our  faith,"  so  that  faith  brings  us  victory  from  day 
to  day,  even  as  faith  at  the  very  outset  brings  us  remission 
of  sin,  as  the  apostle  tells  us  in  the  Acts  x.  43.  But  I  need 
not  multiply  proof  texts,  it  would  have  required  several 
sermons  to  sum  up  the  privileges  of  believers,  privileges 
quite  inconsistent  with  the  idea  that  a  believer  can  be  an 
unsaved  man.  You  can  find  these  for  yourselves,  for  they 
are  as  plentiful  in  Scripture  as  ears  of  corn  in  harvest. 
Everywhere  there  are  such  privileges  ascribed  to  believers  as 
could  not  be  ascribed  to  them  if  they  were  not  saved  souls. 

Once  again,  the  luliole  tone  of  Scripture  regards  the  be- 
liever as  a  saved  man.  "  Believers  "  is  a  common  synonym 
for  saints,  for  sanctified  persons  ;  and  truth  to  say  the  epis- 
tles are  written  to  believers,  for  they  are  written  to  the 
churches,  and  churches  are  but  assemblages  of  believers. 
The  Lord  looks  upon  men  as  divided  into  believers  and 
unbelievers,  and  between  these  two  there  is  a  gulf  of  differ- 
ence as  great  as  that  between  the  Israelites  and  the  Egyptians 
in  the  day  when  the  pillar  gave  light  to  Israel  but  darkness 
to  the  hosts  of  Egypt.  Believest  thou  in  Jesus  ?  Thou  art 
in  the  favor  of  God.  Dost  thou  not  believe  in  him  ?  Then 
no  priest  can  help  thee,  nor  canst  thou  help  thyself ;  thou 
art'  lost  and  ruined  and  undone.  The  only  way  of  escape  is 
that  thou  believe  in  Jesus  Christ. 

Brethren,  when  the  Word  of  God  tells  us  so  positively 
that  having  believed  we  are  saved,  can  you  see  any  earthly 
use  in  going  to  a  person  who  says  he  is  authorized  of  God. 


236 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


and  asking  him  whether  you  are  saved  or  not  ?  I  cannot 
for  one.  I  think  it  far  easier  by  God's  grace  to  believe  in 
Jesus  than  to  believe  in  these  begowned  and  bedizened 
clerics  :  and  to  believe  in  Jesus  and  in  them  too  is  like  see- 
ing by  the  light  of  the  sun  aided  by  the  lamp  of  the  glow- 
worm. What  can  the  little  men  be  at  ?  In  the  bad  old 
times  in  the  south  a  free  negro  was  forced  to  carry  his  papers 
about  with  him,  but  in  that  blessed  day  when  the  Jubilee 
trumpet  sounded,  and  every  African  throughout  the  States 
was  free,  I  can  hardly  imagine  some  little  squire  or  country 
judge  saying  to  the  emancipated  negro,  "  Sam,  I  will  make 
out  papers  for  you,  and  for  your  consolation  I  will  put  my 
name  'Jeremiah  Stiggins'  at  the  bottom."  Why,  the  eman- 
cipated negro  would  have  said,  "  I  have  seen  the  proclama- 
tion which  has  the  name  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  the  President 
of  the  United  States,  at  its  foot,  and  I  do  not  care  a  button 
for  your  name  or  anybody  else's."  Having  believed  in  the 
Lord  Jesus,  I  have  salvation  upon  the  authority  of  the 
Word  of  God,  and  on  the  Holy  Ghost's  authority  I  know 
that  there  is  therefore  now  no  condemnation  to  them  that 
are  in  Christ  Jesus,  and  therefore  I  would  not  thank  an 
angel  for  his  oath  if  he  tendered  it  in  confirmation.  When 
the  little  man  in  the  surplice  comes  to  me  and  says,  "I  will 
give  you  a  certificate  that  you  are  absolved  ; "  I  reply,  "I 
am  very  much  obliged  to  you,  but  there  are  softer  heads  than 
mine,  and  you  had  better  exercise  your  arts  upon  them ;  you 
cannot  excite  in  me  any  feeling  but  that  of  pity,  bordering 
upon  contempt."  Before  God  the  whole  business  is  blas- 
phemy, and  before  Christian  men  it  is  foolery  and  worse. 

III.  The  last  point  is  this,  How  do  we  know  that  we 
are  believers  ?  It  is  clear  that  if  we  are  believers  we  are 
saved,  but  how  do  we  know  that  we  are  believers  ? 

First  of  all,  as  a  general  rule,  it  is  a  matter  of  conscious- 
ness. How  do  I  know  that  I  breathe  ?  How  do  I  know  that 
I  think  ?   How  do  I  know  that  I  believe  that  there  was  once 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


237 


a  Saxon  Heptarchy  ?  I  know  I  do,  and  that  is  enough. 
Faith  is  to  a  large  extent  a  matter  of  consciousness.  A  man 
is  not  always  alike  conscious  of  what  is  true,  for  a  man 
might  b~  in  such  a  weak  condition  that  he  might  say,  "  I 
hardly  know  whether  my  heart  beats,"  and  yet  it  will  be 
beating  all  the  time.  Doubts  may  arise,  and  will,  but  as  a 
general  rule  faith  is  a  matter  of  consciousness.  I  live,  and 
if  you  ask  me  for  proof  I  reply,  "I  know  I  do."  I  believe, 
and  if  you  ask  me  how  I  know  it  I  reply,  "  I  am  sure  I  do." 

Still  there  is  other  evidence.  How  do  I  know  that  I  am 
a  believer  ?  Why,  by  the  very  remarkable  change  which  I 
underwent  when  I  believed  ;  for  when  a  man  believes  in 
Jesus  Christ  there  is  such  a  change  wrought  in  him  that 
he  must  be  aware  of  it.  As  in  the  case  of  the  blind  man 
when  his  eyes  were  opened  he  said,  "  One  thing  I  know, 
whereas  I  was  blind,  now  I  see."  That  poor  woman  who 
had  the  issue  of  blood  so  many  years,  when  she  touched 
Christ's  garment  and  was  healed,  how  did  she  know  it  ? 
We  read  that  she  felt  in  herself  that  she  was  made  whole. 
She  had  touched  the  hem  of  the  Lord's  garment,  and  was 
recovered,  and  in  the  same  way  the  believer  knows  that  he 
has  believed.  Suppose  a  child  was  born  in  a  coal  pit,  and 
has  seen  no  light  except  that  of  the  candles  down  below,  and 
that  he  is  suddenly  taken  up  the  shaft  to  see  the  sun,  and 
the  green  fields,  and  the  sweet  spring  flowers.  WThat  a 
surprise  !  I  cannot  wonder  if  the  child  should  think  itself 
dreaming  ;  but  if  you  were  to  say  to  it,  "  Are  you  out  of  the 
coal  pit  ?  can  you  prove  that  you  are  ?  "  why,  notwithstand- 
ing that  the  child  would  hardly  know  where  it  was  because 
of  its  vast  surprise,  yet  would  it  be  sure  that  it  was  out  of 
the  darkness,  convinced  by  an  argument  within  itself  which 
nobody  could  refute.  So  do  we  know,  brethren,  that  we  arc 
born  again,  for  we  feel  a  new  life,  and  live  in  a  new  world. 
Things  we  never  dreamed  of  before  we  have  realized  now. 
I  remember  one  who  when  he. was  converted  said,  ' 1  Well, 


238 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


either  the  world  is  new  or  else  I  am."  This  change  is  to  us 
strong  evidence  that  faith  is  in  us,  and  has  exercised  its  power. 

Brethren,  we  have  further  evidence  that  we  believe,  for 
our  affections  are  so  altered.  The  believer  can  say  that  the 
things  he  once  loved  he  now  hates,  and  the  things  he  hated 
he  now  loves  ;  that  which  gave  him  pleasure  now  causes  him 
pain,  and  things  which  were  irksome  and  unpleasant  have 
now  become  delightful  to  him.  Especially  is  there  a  great 
change  in  us  with  respect  to  God.  We  said  in  our  hearts, 
"No  God."  Not  that  we  dared  say,  "There  is  no  God  ;" 
but  we  wanted  to  get  away  from  him ;  we  would  have  been 
glad  to  hear  that  there  was  no  God.  How  altered  are  our 
affections  !  Now  our  greatest  joy  is  in  God,  the  nearer 
we  can  approach  to  him  the  better,  the  very  sound*  of  his 
name  is  delicious  music  to  us.  Now,  we  know  that  this 
change  was  produced  by  our  believing  in  him,  of  that  we  are 
confident  for  the  matter  is  clear.  A  certain  master  had 
a  servant  whose  mind  was  very  much  poisoned  against  him 
by  slanderous  tales.  Everything  the  master  did  the  servant 
misconstrued,  because  he  considered  him  to  be  a  tyrant 
and  an  oppressor.  Now  it  came  to  pass  that  this  servant 
oue  day  learned  more  concerning  his  master,  and  found 
out  that  everything  he  had  done  was  dictated  by  the  most 
generous  motives,  and  that  his  master  indeed  was  one  of 
the  excellent  of  the  earth.  The  moment  that  servant's 
thoughts  of  his  master  changed  and  he  had  faith  in  his 
goodness,  he  acted  very  differently,  as  you  may  well  con- 
ceive ;  none  could  be  more  faithful  and  diligent  than  he. 
Now,  we  prove  that  we  believe,  because  we  feel  towards 
God  so  very  differently  ;  he  is  loved  in  our  inmost  souls, 
and  we  delight  to  serve  him.  This  would  have  been  utterly 
impossible  if  we  had  not  been  changed  in  our  feelings  toward 
him  by  being  led  to  trust  him. 

We  know,  also,  that  we  believe  because  though  very  far 
from  perfect  we  love  holiness  and  strive  after  purity.  You 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


239 


that  have  believed  in  Jesus,  do  you  not  now  pant  after  holi- 
ness ?  Do  you  not  endeavor  to  do  that  which  is  right, 
and  when  you  are  conscious  that  you  have  failed  does  not 
conscience  prick  you  ?  Have  you  not  gone  on  your  knees 
in  bitterness  of  soul  and  said,  "  My  God,  help  me  and 
deliver  me,  for  I  delight  in  thy  commandments ;  help  me 
to  keep  thy  statutes  "  ?  Right,  and  truth,  and  peace  are 
the  things  you  now  seek  after,  whereas  time  was  when  these 
were  of  small  account,  aud  your  own  selfish  pleasure,  and 
your  own  perverted  judgment,  were  the  rule  of  your  being. 
By  this  change  of  conduct  we  know  that  we  have  believed 
in  Jesus  Christ. 

And  my  dear  brothers  and  sisters,  we  know  that  we  have 
believed  in  Jesus  Christ  because  now  we  have  communion 
with  God ;  we  are  in  the  habit  of  speaking  with  God  in 
prayer,  and  hearing  the  Lord  speak  with  us  when  we  read 
his  word.  Some  of  us  have  spoken  with  our  Lord  Jesus 
so  often  that  we  have  grown  to  be  near  and  dear  friends, 
and  whatsoever  we  ask  in  prayer  he  grants  us.  Answered 
prayers  are  sweet  testimonies  to  faith.  When  the  Lord 
is  pleased  to  deliver  us  out  of  trouble,  when  his  Holy  Spirit 
cheers  us  in  depression,  when  he  helps  us  under  difficulties  ; 
when  he  makes  us  patient  under  pain — all  these  things 
become  proofs  that  we  have  real  faith  in  him,  since  our 
faith  has  realized  him  and  brought  him  near,  taught  us  how 
to  live  upon  him,  and  so  strengthened  us  in  his  ways. 

Once  more  only  upon  this  point,  and  then  we  will  come 
to  the  practical  conclusion  :  we  know  that  we  have  believed 
in  the  Lord  Jesus  because  we  have  over  and  above  all  this  a 
secret  something,  indescribable  to  others,  but  well-known  by 
ourselves,  which  is  called  in  Scripture  the  ivitness  of  the  Holy 
Spirit:  for  it  is  written,  "The  Spirit  himself  also  beareth 
witness  with  our  spirit  that  we  are  born  of  God."  First, 
our  spirit  bears  witness  to  our  new  birth,  and  then  the 
^Spirit  of  God  comes  in  and  bears  witness  with  our  spirit  to 


240 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


the  same  effect.  Do  you  know  what  it  means  ?  If  you  do 
not  I  cannot  tell  you.  "  The  secret  of  the  Lord  is  with  them 
that  fear  him."  There  comes  stealing  over  the  soul  some- 
times a  peace,  a  joy,  a  perfect  rest,  a  heavenly  deliciousness, 
a  supreme  content,  in  which,  though  no  voice  is  heard,  yet 
are  we  conscious  that  there  is  rushing  through  our  souls,like 
a  strain  of  heaven's  own  music,  the  witness  of  the  Spirit  of 
God.  We  are  sure  of  it,  as  sure  as  we  are  of  our  own  being, 
and  by  that  witness  we  know  that  we  are  indeed  believers  in 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

Now  mark,  we  may  not  ask  for  any  witness  to  begin  with 
beyond  the  testimony  of  God,  nor  will  any  other  witness  be 
given.  I  charge  all  of  you  here  present  not  to  say,  "  I  will 
believe  in  God  when  I  obtain  the  inwrard  witness."  No,  you 
are  bound  to  believe  in  God  first,  on  the  sure  testimony  of 
his  word.  If  you  believe  his  word  you  shall  know  the  sweets 
of  grace.  To  ask  for  more  evidence  first  is  as  though  a  man 
should  say,  "  Here  is  a  medicine  prepared  by  a  physician  of 
great  repute,  and  it  is  said  to  be  very  powerful  for  driving 
out  the  disease  from  which  I  suffer  :  I  will  take  it  as  soon  as 
I  see  that  I  am  improving  by  its  means."  The  man  has  lost 
his  reason,  has  he  not  ?  He  cannot  expect  even  a  partial 
cure  till  he  has  taken  the  medicine.  He  cannot  expect  the 
result  to  come  before  the  cause.  You  must  take  the  good 
Physician's  medicine  as  a.  matter  of  faith,  and  afterwards 
your  faith  will  be  increased  by  the  beneficial  result.  You 
must  believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus,  because  of  the  witness  of 
God  concerning  him,  for  that  is  all  the  witness  you  ought  to 
wish  for,  and  all  that  God  will  give  you.  After  you  have 
believed  other  witnesses  will  spring  up  in  your  soul,  as  the 
results  of  faith,  and  so  your  confidence  will  be  strengthened  ; 
but  just  now,  beloved,  believe  in  Jesus  Christ,  and  having 
believed  in  him  you  shall  know  that  you  are  forgiven  for  his 
name's  sake. 

In  closing,  let  me  ask  every  person  here,  do  you  believe 


THE  PKIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


211 


in  Jesus  Christ  or  no  ?  If  thou  believest  thou  art  saved  ;  if 
thou  believest  not  thou  art  condemned  already,  because  thou 
hast  not  believed.    Remember  that. 

Let  me  next  ask,  are  any  of  you  seeking  after  any  witness 
beyond  the  witness  of  God  ?  If  you  are,  do  you  not  know 
that  virtually  you  are  making  God  a  liar  ?  For  if  God  says 
such  and  such  a  thing  is  true,  and  you  seek  any  further 
evidence  beyond  his  word,  you  do  in  effect  say  that  God's 
witness  is  not  sufficient,  and  that  God  is  false.  I  pray  you 
behave  not  so  insolently.  Accept  his  naked  word,  for  it  is 
surer  than  the  sight  of  the  eye  or  the  hearing  of  the  ears. 
Behold  how  the  arch  of  heaven  stands  without  a  single 
pillar,  vast  as  it  is  :  what  sustains  it  but  the  word  of  God  ? 
See  how  this  round  world  hangs  on  nothing,  and  yet  starts 
not  from  her  sphere  :  what  maintains  her  in  her  course  but 
the  bare  word  of  God  ?  That  word  which  rolls  the  stars 
along,  and  has  never  failed  to  fulfil  its  purpose,  is  that  on 
which  you  are  asked  to  lean.  Sinner,  will  you  believe  your 
God  ?  If  you  will,  you  shall  be  established,  and  blessed, 
and  enriched  ;  but  if  you  still  say  he  is  a  liar  then  shall  you 
be  as  the  heathen  in  the  desert  which  shall  not  see  when 
good  cometh,  but  suffereth  perpetual  drought.  If  you  rest 
in  Jesus,  trusting  him,  you  have  done  well,  but  yet  you  have 
only  done  him  justice.  There  is  no  merit  in  believing  what 
is  true,  who  but  a  man  of  base  heart  would  refuse  to  do  so  ? 
To  believe  One  who  cannot  lie  is  by  no  means  a  meritorious 
action,  and  hence  salvation  is  by  faith  that  it  may  be  by 
grace  ;  yet  faith  will  bring  to  you  life,  love,  joy,  peace, 
immortality,  and  all  that  heaven  can  mean. 

May  God  grant  you  grace  to  believe ;  but  I  pray  you 
do  not  let  the  little  man  in  robes  stand  between  you  and 
Christ.  Let  no  one  do  so.  I  charge  you,  never  regard 
anything  I  say  as  having  any  authority  in  it  apart  from 
the  word  of  God.  I  reckon  it  of  all  crimes  the  greatest 
for  a  man  to  assume  to  mediate  *  between  men  and  God. 
11 


242 


THE  PRIEST  DISPENSED  WITH. 


Little  as  I  respect  the  devil  I  prefer  him  to  a  priest  who 
pretends  to  forgive  sins  ;  for  even  the  devil  has  too  much 
honesty  about  him  to  pretend  to  give  absolution  in  God's 
name.  There  is  but  one  pardoning  priest,  and  he  is  the  Son 
of  the  Highest.  His  one  sacrifice  has  ended  all  other  sacri- 
fices ;  his  one  atonement  has  rendered  all  future  oblations 
an  imposture.  To-day  as  Elias  stood  on  Oarmel  and  cried 
out  against  the  priests  of  Baal,  so  would  I.  I  count  no 
words  too  severe.  If  my  every  speech  should  be  a  thunder- 
bolt and  every  word  a  lightning  flash,  it  would  not  be  too 
strong  to  protest  against  the  accursed  system  which  once 
degraded  the  whole  earth  to  kiss  the  Pope's  foot,  and  is 
degrading  our  nation  still,  and  that  through  a  so-called 
Protestant  church.  0,  God  Almighty,  thou  God  of  Latmier 
and  Eidley,  God  of  the  martyrs,  whose  ashes  are  still  among 
us,  wilt  thou  suffer  this  people  to  go  back  again  to  false  gods 
and  saints  and  saintesses,  and  virgins,  and  crucifixes,  relics, 
and  cast  clouts  and  rotten  rags  ;  *f or  to  this  also  will  they 
come  if  thy  grace  prevent  not.  Oh,  my  hearers,  Jesus  is  the 
only  Saviour  of  the  sons  of  men.  Believe  in  him  and  live. 
This  is  the  only  gospel :  at  your  peril  reject  it.  I  pray  you 
receive  it  for  Christ's  sake. 


SERMON  XIII. 


THE  SACKED  LOVE-TOKEN. 

Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 
ington. 

"  And  the  blood  shall  be  to  yon  for  a  token." — Exodus  xii.  13. 

You  remember  that  last  Sabbath  morning  we  spoke  npon 
the  witness  within  the  child  of  God.  We  tried  to  show  that 
believers  did  not  need  any  man  to  assure  them  that  they  are 
forgiven,  that  they  could  get  on  exceedingly  well  without 
absolution  from  a  priest,  and  could  know  their  salvation 
altogether  apart  from  the  ghostly  father,  seeing  that  they 
have  the  evidence  of  it  in  their  own  souls  by  believing  in  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  We  shall  not  think  or  speak  much  of 
that  miserable  impostor,  the  priest,  this  morning,  for  he 
really  is  not  worth  thinking  of,  but  we  shall  continue  our 
consideration  of  the  witness  which  the  Lord  has  given  to  his 
believing  people  concerning  their  safety  in  Jesus  Christ. 
May  the  Holy  Spirit  help  us  while  we  meditate  upon  the 
most  vital  of  all  subjects,  which  lies  at  the  very  heart  of 
true  religion. 

There  are  some,  as  we  have  said,  who  desire  a  token  of 
their  safety  from  man,  a  poor  thing  when  they  get  it,  and 
not  worth  asking  for ;  and  there  are  others  who  desire  it 
from  God  in  the  form  of  a  sign  or  a  wonder,  or  else  they 


THE  SACRED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


will  not  believe.  "  Show  me  a  token  for  good  "  is  a  prayer 
which  is  often  used  in  a  very  mistaken  sense.  They  desire 
some  special  transaction  of  providence,  or  remarkable  dream, 
or  singular  feeling ;  but  God  says  to  all  those  who  desire  a 
token  for  good,  "The  blood  shall  be  to  you  for  a  token." 
What  more  can  we  desire  ?  All  the  squadrons  of  the  angelic 
host  could  not  better  assure  us  if  each  one  brought  a  message 
from  heaven.  The  best  of  all  evidences  of  divine  love  is  the 
cross.  The  strongest  of  all  assurances  of  safety,  the  surest 
of  all  pledges  of  favor,  the  best  token  of  grace  that  a  man  can 
behold  is  the  sprinkled  blood,  by  which  he  is  cleansed  from 
sin.    "  The  blood  shall  be  to  you  for  a  token." 

Before  we  dive  into  this  subject,  let  us  notice  that  the 
blood  which  was  a  token  to  God's  people  was  not  merely 
that  which  had  been  shed  by  the  sacrifice  of  an  unblemished 
lamb,  but  blood  which  had  been  caught  in  a  basin,  had  been 
taken  by  the  person  at  the  head  of  the  household  in  his  own 
hand,  and  recognized  as  shed  for  him.  Then  the  bunch  of 
hyssop  was  laid  asoak  in  the  basin,  and  afterwards  the  blood 
was  sprinkled  upon  the  lintel  and  the  door-posts  ;  this  blood 
thus  appropriated  was  the  token.  By  an  appropriating  faith 
we  must  take  Christ  to  be  ours  ;  we  must,  in  a  word,  believe 
in  the  atonement  which  he  has  made,  for  an  atonement 
which  is  not  believed  in  is  no  atonement  to  us.  Our  Lord 
Jesus  laid  down  his  life  for  us,  but  he  that  believeth  not  in 
him  shall  by  no  means  partake  of  any  of  the  blessings  of 
his  death. 

The  sprinkled  blood  preserved  the  houses  of  the  Israelites  ; 
and  it  is  the  blood  of  Jesus  accepted  by  us,  relied  upon,  and 
applied  to  our  consciences  which  delivers  us  from  death. 
This  sprinkling,  moreover,  was  done  in  a  very  public  man- 
ner ;  they  stained  the  lintel  and  the  two  side  posts,  so  that 
every  passer-by  might  see  it,  yea,  and  must  see  it.  So  salva- 
tion is  premised  not  alone  to  believing,  but  to  confession 
with  the  mouth.       He  that  with  his  heart  believeth,  and 


THE  SACKED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


245 


with  his  mouth  maketh  confession  of  him  shall  be  saved  ; " 
and  so  the  grand  commission  at  the  end  of  the  gospel  by 
Mark  puts  it,  not  "  he  that  belie veth  shall  be  saved,"  but 
"  he  that  believe th  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved for 
if  we  believe  in  Christ  we  must  not  be  ashamed  of  him. 
Shame  about  faith  would  argue  insincerity  of  faith.  True 
faith  in  the  Saviour  is  so  potent  a  principle  of  our  lives  that 
it  must  be  seen  whether  we  publish  it  or  no,  and  we  must  be 
willing  that  it  should  be  seen  :  yea,  this  should  be  the  most 
visible  point  in  our  lives,  our  glory  and  our  delight,  that  we 
do  indeed  believe  in  the  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  Oh  that 
every  one  of  you,  my  dear  hearers,  used  the  cross  for  its 
proper  purpose  !  I  grieve  that  any  among  you  should  need 
to  have  it  asked  of  you — 

"  Is  it  nothing  to  you,  oh  you  that  pass  by, 
Is  it  nothing  to  you  that  Jesus  should  die  ?  " 

The  lamb  is  slain  but  you  have  never  caught  the  blood,  you 
have  never  sprinkled  it  with  the  hyssop  of  faith,  and  conse- 
quently you  are  not  saved.  Oh  that  each  one  of  you  could 
say,  "  My  faith  is  resting  in  the  substitutionary  work  of 
Jesus."  I  could,  indeed,  sing  that  blessed  hymn  just  now, 
'  and  I  drank  it  in  with  all  my  heart,  and  I  heartily  wish  you 
could  all  sing  it  too — 

'*  Complete  atonement  thou  hast  made, 
And  to  the  utmost  farthing  paid 

Whate'er  thy  people  owed ; 
Nor  can  his  wrath  on  me  take  place, 
If  shelter'd  in  thy  righteousness, 
And  sprinkled  with  thy  blood  ?  " 

Now,  to  the  text.  The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  is  to  Christians 
a  token,  and  in  order  to  bring  out  the  whole  sense  we  must 
have  five  words  :  it  is  a  distinguishing  token,  an  assuring  to- 
ken, a  significant  token,  a  love  token,  and  a  recognition  token. 

L  First,  then,  the  blood  shall  be  to  you  for  a  token,  a 


246 


THE  SACRED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


distinguishing  token.  You  could  tell  where  the  Israel- 
ites dwelt,  for  the  blood  mark  was  there  that  night ;  you 
knew  the  Egyptian's  abode,  for  he  knew  nothing  of  the 
token.  Nothing  so  truly  distinguishes  a  genuine  Christian 
as  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ.  Where  the  blood  is  not  be- 
lieved in  nor  prized  there  you  have  dead  Christianity,  for 
"the  blood  is  the  life  thereof."  A  bloodless  gospel  is  a  life- 
less gospel  :  if  the  atonement  be  denied  or  frittered  away, 
or  put  into  a  secondary  place,  or  obscured,  in  that  propor- 
tion the  life  has  gone  out  of  the  religion  which  is  professed. 
But  we,  brethren,  bear  this  distinguishing  token,  the  mark 
of  the  blood.  Our  religion  is,  in  many  respects,  a  very  sin- 
gular one — one  open  to  a  world  of  objection  and  ridicule  from 
carnal  minds ;  one  which  always  has  been  criticised,  and 
always  will  be  :  for  we  believe,  first,  tfrat  our  sin  deserves 
death.  We  do  not  believe  transgression  to  be  a  trifle,  or 
a  mere  misdemeanor  of  the  first  class,  but  we  know  it  to  be  a 
capital  offence,  deserving  the  death  penalty.  When  the 
Lord  saith,  "  The  soul  that  sinneth  it  shall  die,"  our  con- 
science says  "  Amen  "  to  the  sentence  of  the  Most  High. 
The  tjlood  on  the  door-post  meant  that  those  who  dwelt 
there  confessed  that  they  deserved  to  die  as  much  as  others, 
and  would  have  done  so  had  it  not  been  for  the  paschal 
lamb.  The  crimson  mark  was  virtually  a  confession  of  the 
desert  of  death.  So  every  believer  feels  that  his  sin  is  great 
and  grievous,  terrible  and  overwhelming.  He  does  not  sub- 
scribe to  theories  which  make  little  of  man's  guilt.  He  has 
no  ear  for  those  who  try  to  mitigate  the  penalty,  and  en- 
deavor to  make  the  guilt  appear  small.  He  does  not  call  sin 
a  mistake,  a  failure,  a  lapse.  I  think  I  have  heard  all  those 
words  lately  used  about  sin,  by  those  who  say,  "  Poor  unhappy 
man  !  so  mistaken,  seeking  after  the  light  and  crying  after 
God  in  the  dark  ;  how  sad  that  he  should  stumble  !  Surely 
God  will  not  be  so  harsh  as  to  punish  him  forever."  Such 
talk  has  no  charm  for  us  ;  we  own  the  heinous  criminality  of 


THE  SACRED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


247 


sin,  and  the  justice  of  the  awful  sentence  which  declares  that 
the  wicked  shall  go  away  into  everlasting  punishment.  Our 
God  is  just,  and  taketh  vengeance  on  iniquity.  The  God  who 
smote  all  the  first-born  of  Egypt,  and  overthrew  Pharaoh  in 
the  Red  Sea,  is  the  God  whom  we  adore  ;  and  as  we  bow 
before  him  we  own  that  he  might  righteously  have  smitten 
us  also,  and  have  utterly  destroyed  us.  For  us  the  blood 
mark  is  virtually  an  acknowledgment  that  we  have  the  sen- 
tence of  death  in  ourselves,  and  dare  not  trust  in  ourselves. 

We  are  singular  enough  to  believe  in  substitution.  The 
blood  upon  the  lintel  said,  "  Some  one  has  died  here  instead 
of  us."  We  also  hold  and  rest  in  this  truth,  that  Christ 
died,  "the  just  for  the  unjust,  to  bring  us  to  God."  We 
believe  that  "  he  was  made  a  curse  for  us,  as  it  is  written, 
Cursed  is  every  one  that  hangeth  on  a  tree."  The  belief  in 
the  greatness  of  sin  distinguishes  Christians  from  Pharisees, 
and  all  other  self-justiciaries ;  and  the  belief  in  substitution 
separates  *  Christians  from  all  those  philosophic  adulterators 
of  the  gospel  who  are  willing  to  hold  up  Christ's  example, 
but  cannot  endure  his  expiatory  sacrifice,  who  will  speak  to 
you  of  Christ's  spirit  and  the  power  of  his  teaching  but 
reject  his  vicarious  'death.  We  do  not  subscribe  to  the  lax 
theology  which  teaches  that  the  Lord  Jesus  did  something 
or  other  which,  in  some  way  or  other,  is,  in  some  degree  or 
other,  connected  with  the  salvation  of  men  :  we  hold  as  vital 
truths  that  he  stood  in  his  people's  stead,  and  from  them 
endured  a  death  which  honored  the  justice  of  God,  and 
satisfied  his  righteous  laws.  We  firmly  believe  that  he  bore 
the  penalty  due  to  sin,  or  that  which  from  the  excellence 
of  his  person,  was  fully  equivalent  thereto.  My  brethren, 
this  is  and  always  will  be  assailed,  but  it  is  the  keystone 
of  the  gospel  arch.  As  at  Waterloo  all  the  battle  seemed  to 
rage  around  the  chateau  of  Hugoumont,  so  does  the  conflict 
centre  around  the  doctrine  of  the  atoning  death  of  our  great 
Substitute :  but  we  are  not  going  to  shift  our  ground  for 


248 


THE  SACRED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


a  moment,  nor  to  adopt  any  other  phraseology.  "We  stand 
to  the  literal  substitution  of  Jesus  Christ  in  the  place  of  his 
people,  and  his  real  endurance  of  suffering  and  death  in 
their  stead,  and  from  this  distinct  and  definite  ground 
we  will  not  move  an  inch.  Even  the  term  "  the  blood" 
from  which  some  shrink  with  the  affectation  of  great  deli- 
cacy, we  shall  not  cease  to  use,  whoever  may  take  offence  at 
it,  for  it  brings  out  that  fundamental  truth  which  is  the 
power  of  God  unto  salvation.  We  dwell  beneath  the  blood 
mark,  and  rejoice  that  Jesus  for  us  poured  out  his  soul  unto 
dtt  \\  when  he  bare  the  sin  of  many. 

But  we  believe  more,  and  what  will  seem  very  strange  to 
some, — we  believe  that  we  died  in  Jesus.  The  Israelite 
knew  that  when  the  angel  went  through  Egypt  he  meant  to 
exact  a  life  at  every  house,  and  so  he  exhibited  the  blood,  as 
much  as  to  say,  "The  firstborn  is  dead  here."  The  lamb 
has  died  instead  of  the  firstborn,  and  virtually  the  firstborn 
is  dead,  and  there  is  no  cause  for  smiting,  because  the  smit- 
ing has  been  done.  So,  when  Jesus  died  his  chosen  died  in 
him,  and  their  sins  received  the  vengeance  due  in  that  day 
when  on  the  accursed  tree  he  yielded  up  his  life  a  ransom  for 
many.  How  can  we  die  ?  We  are  dead  in  him  already,  and 
have  been  buried  with  him  by  virtue  of  our  union  with  his 
blessed  person.  This  is  a  most  precious  truth  and  those  who 
hold  it  are  thereby  distinguished  from  the  rest  of  mankind. 

Believing  this,  we  next  come  to  the  conclusion  that  we 
are  safe,  for  when  the  Hebrew  had  struck  the  blood  upon 
the  door-posts  of  his  house,  he  went  in  to  feast,  not  to  fret, — 
he  went  into  the  house  to  eat  the  lamb  whose  blood  had  been 
sprinkled,  and  to  stand  at  the  table  with  his  loins  girt  about, 
expecting  not  to  die,  but  to  go  forth  to  a  land  which  the 
Lord  his  God  would  give  to  him.  This  is  the  distinguishing 
mark  of  a  Christian,  that  he  knows  himself  to  be  saved,  and 
therefore  he  keeps  the  feast,  rejoicing  in  the  Lord,  and, 
standing  with  his  loins  girt,  expecting  soon  to  be  called 


THE  SACKED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


249 


to  the  laud  which  the  Lord  his  God  has  given  to  him,  that 
he  may  inherit  and  dwell  therein  forever.  Other  men  are 
not  saved,  nor  dare  they  profess  that  they  are.  They  own 
that  they  have  a  great  deal  to  do  before  they  will  be  saved, 
present  salvation  they  know  not ;  or  if  they  think  they 
are  saved,  yet  they  dream  that  their  continuance  therein 
depends  upon  themselves,  there  is  something  wanted  still 
beside  the  sprinkled  blood.  The  Israelite  wanted  nothing  but 
the  blood,  he  was  perfectly  satisfied  with  that,  and  so^s  the 
believer  :  he  has  believed  in  Christ  as  dying  in  his  s$ead, 
he  is  delighted  to  know  that  he  is  complete  in  hkstr  lid 
accepted  in  the  beloved,  and  he  waits  till  the  summons  shall 
come,  and  he  shall  be  called  to  ascend  to  the  glory  land, 
whither  Christ  has  gone  to  prepare  a  place  for  him. 

The  Israelite  in  Egypt  made  this  distinction  prominent. 
As  we  have  already  said,  he  put  it  upon  the  upper  part  of 
his  door  and  upon  the  two  side-posts  too.  We  read  in  the 
Revelation  that  those  who  received  the  mark  of  the  beast 
sometimes  bore  it  in  their  forehead,  but  sometimes  also 
in  their  right  hand  :  while  he  who  had  the  mark  of  God 
always  received  it  in  his  forehead,  never  in  his  right  hand, 
where  it  could  be  hidden  within  the  palm.  It  has  been 
very  well  remarked  that  there  is  a  back  door  to  hell,  but 
there  is  none  to  heaven.  The  way  to  heaven  is  the  king's 
highway,  a  way  which  is  not  made  for  concealment,  but 
for  honest  travellers  who  have  nothing  to  hide.  Believers 
must  be  seen  for  they  are  the  lights  of  the  world  ;  yet  there 
are  some  who  try  to  go  to  heaven  up  the  back  stairs,  and 
serve  the  Lord  only  by  night.  It  must  not  be.  Strike 
the  blood  where  all  can  see  it,  and  let  men  know  that  you 
are  a  believer  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ's  atoning  sacrifice  : 
whether  they  like  it  or  no,  let  them  know  that  this  is  all 
your  salvation  and  all  your  desire.  I  had  the  pleasure  of 
riding  into  the  Leonine  city  in  Rome  a  short  time  after  the 
Italian  troops  had  taken  possession,  and  I  noticed  that  every 
11* 


250 


THE  SACRED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


house  had  marked  up  most  conspicuously  the  arms  of  the 
kingdom  of  Italy  and  the  name  of  Victor  Emmanuel.  They 
were  not  content  to  have  it  over  their  doors,  but  all  over  the 
fronts  of  the  houses  you  read  "  Victor  Emmanuel,  King 
of  Italy,"  showing  that  they  were  right  glad  to  escape  from 
the  dominion  of  the  Pope,  and  to  avow  their  allegiance  to  a 
constitutional  king.  Surely  if  for  a  human  monarch  and  the 
earthly  freedom  which  he  brought  men  could  thus  set  up  his 
escutcheon  everywhere,  you  and  I  who  believe  in  Jesus  are 
bound  to  exhibit  the  blood-red  token,  and  to  keep  it  always 
conspicuous.  Let  others  believe  the  priest,  we  believe  Jesus. 
Let  others  trust  their  works,  we  trust  the  sprinkled  blood. 
Let  others  rely  on  frames  and  feelings,  discipline  and  devel- 
opment, we  believe  in  Jesus  Christ  and  him  only ;  and  we 
nail  to  the  mast  the  blood-red  banner  of  atoning  sacrifice. 

"«M.y  faith  is  built  on  nothing  less 
Than  Jesus'  blood  and  righteousness. 
I  dare  not  trust  the  sweetest  frame, 
But  wholly  lean  on  Jesus'  name. 
On  Christ,  the  solid  rock,  I  stand, 
All  other  ground  is  sinking  sand." 

Thus  much,  then,  upon  the  blood  as  the  distinguishing  token. 

II.  Now,  secondly,  the  blood  was  an  assuring  token. 
When  we  mean  to  do  a  special  kindness  for  a  friend  it  may 
be  we  say  to  him,  "  That  you  may  be  sure  I  shall  do  it,  here 
is  a  token  of  my  faithfulness."  God  gave  to  his  people  the 
blood  of  sprinkling,  as  the  token  that  he  would  preserve 
them  safely  ;  and  surely,  the  more  the  Israelite  studied  that 
token  the  more  at  ease  would  he  be,  for  he  would  say,  "  God 
has  appointed  this  lamb  unblemished  to  be  in  our  stead,  and 
seeing  that  he  appointed  it,  and  the  lamb  has  been  slain,  we 
are  sure  he  will  not  run  back  from  the  substitution  which  ho 
has  himself  ordained,  and  we  are  perfectly  safe."  Now,  I 
want  you  just  for  a  few  minutes,  especially  you  who  have 
any  doubts  or  fears,  to  look  upon  the  blood  of  Christ  and 


THE  SACRED  LoVE-TOKEN. 


251 


see  its  suitableness  to  be  an  assuring  token  to  your  con- 
sciences. Remember,  first,  what  it  was, — the  blood,  the 
token  of  suffering.  Your  sin  deserves  suffering  ;  Christ  has 
suffered  for  sin.  Think  what  suffering  he  endured,  what 
contradiction  of  sinners,  and  what  forsaking  of  his  Father. 
Suffer  no  one  to  depreciate  the  physical  sufferings  of  Christ, 
but  still  remember  that  his  mental  sufferings  were  greater ; 
his  soul  sufferings  were  the  soul  of  his  sufferings.  Go  to 
dark  Gethsemane,  go  to  shameful  Gabbatha,  go  to  deadly 
Golgotha,  and^as  you  see  your  Lord  and  mark  that  wondrous 
spectacle  of  woe,  will  you  not  feel  that  he  can  put  away 
your  sin,  and  that  if  he  so  terribly  suffered  you  need  not 
suffer  ?  God  has  accepted  an  expiation  worthy  of  his  just- 
ice ;  that  heaven-rending  cry,  "  My  God,  my  God,  why  hast 
thou  forsaken  me  ? "  shows  how  keen  were  the  pangs  with 
which  our  hope  was  born. 

Think  further,  blood  signifies  not  only  suffering  but 
death,  for  our  Lord  could  only  put  away  sin  by  actually 
dying  ;  all  his  tears,  all  his  holy  living,  all  his  painful  suf- 
ferings even,  could  not  recompense  for  sin  till  the  death 
penalty  was  paid,  for  death  was  that  which  God  had  ap- 
pointed as  the  reward  of  sin,  and  Jesus  died.  Oh  see  him 
die, — see  him  die  !  Was  ever  such  a  spectacle  ?  Every  drop 
that  distils  from  his  pierced  hand  cries  aloud,  "  Safety  for 
the  believer  !  The  ransom  price  is  paid."  The  gash  in  his 
side,  like  the  mouth  of  love,  speaks  eloquently  to  our  hearts, 
"Pardon,  acceptance,  love  eternal!"  I  cannot  see  that 
bowed  head,  and  those  eyes  glazed  in  death,  and  that  dear 
body  taken  down  to  be  laid  in  the  tomb  without  feeling, 
"If  Christ  has  died  there  must  be  boundless  mercy  for  the 
guilty  sons  of  men."  Think  of  it,  and  I  pray  God  the  Holy 
Spirit  to  lead  you  to  see  the  sweetness  and  comfort  which  lie 
in  this  token. 

Remember,  too,  that  you  rest,  not  merely  on  suffering 
and  death,  but  on  the  excellence  of  the  person  so  suffering 


252  THE  SACKED  LOVE- TOKEN. 

and  dying.  Ask  whose  suffering  and  death  is  it?  In  the 
Israelites'  case  it  was  an  unblemished  lamb  ;  in  your  case 
and  mine  it  is  the  spotless  Lamb  of  God.  Oh,  brethren, 
think  of  the  life  of  Jesus  in  its  innocence  and  disinterested- 
ness. Was  ever  such  a  life,  was  ever  such  a  death  of  such  a 
sacred  person  ?  But  he  was  God,  "very  God  of  very  God." 
Those  hands  that  were  pierced  had  healed  the  sick  with 
their  touch,  and  those  nailed  feet  had  trod  the  sea  !  Those 
eyes  all  closed  in  death  had  looked  into  men's  hearts,  and 
those  silent  lips  had  spoken  miracles.  It  was  God  himself 
who  on  the  bloody  tree  offered  expiation  for  sin  against 
himself.  There  must  be  power  in  such  a  death  as  that  to 
put  away  sin.  Do  ye  not  own  that  it  must  be  so  ?  Is  not 
the  token  full  of  comfort  to  you  ? 

Think  again  that  it  was  not  merely  the  lamb,  but  it  was 
the  Lamb  of  God.  That  is  to  say,  when  the  Israelite  killed 
the  lamb  he  was  doing  what  God  commanded  him  to  do,  and 
when  Jesus  died  in  our  stead,  he  did  not  die  as  an  amateur 
Saviour,  but  as  one  appointed  by  God.  Now,  if  God  ap- 
pointed the  atonement  he  must  accept  it.  Surely  if  he  said 
that  Christ  should  die  in  our  stead,  if  he  "laid  upon  him 
the  iniquity  of  us  all,"  then  the  atonement  must  be  accepted 
since  God  himself  set  it  forth,  provided  it,  and  ordained  it. 
How  sweetly  do  I  rest  in  this.  I  feel  when  I  look  up  to  my 
dear  Lord,  and  I  desire  evermore  to  do  so,  as  if  I  could  say 
to  the  justice  of  God,  "  What  canst  thou  urge  against  me  ? 
Do  I  not  present  to  thee  all  thou  canst  demand — a  death  ? 
I  bring  before  thee  a  death  which  thou  didst  appoint  to 
be  instead  of  my  death  ?  If  thou  hast  appointed  it,  I  know 
thou  wilt  not  refuse  it."  This  is  one  of  the  sweetest  parts 
of  the  whole  matter  of  atonement,  and  fills  the  token  with 
assurance. 

One  other  thought,  and  a  sweet  one,  this  token  was  that 
of  blood  which  was  shed:  not  to  be  shed,  but  shed  already. 
They  had  killed  the  lamb?  they  had  taken  the  warm  blood  in 


THE  SACKED  LOVE-TOKEN.  253 

the  basin,  and  smeared  the  door-posts,  it  was  all  done  and  all 
over  :  you  and  I  also  are  resting  in  a  finished  sacrifice,  not  in 
a  sacrifice  to  be  offered,  nor  in  a  sacrifice  which  continues  to 
be  offered,  according  to  this  Anglican  Popery  which  reeks  in 
so  many  parish  churches,  but  a  sacrifice  complete,  for  "  by 
one  offering  he  hath  perfected  forever  them  that  are  set 
apart."  There  is  no  continuance  of  the  offering  of  Christ  in 
the  sacrifice  of  the  mass,  it  is  a  barefaced  lie  before  Almighty 
God,  for  Cbrist  declares  that,  when  he  had  once  offered  him- 
self, he  forever  sat  down  at  the  right  hand  of  the  majesty 
in  the  heavens.  By  that  word  "It  is  finished  ! "  he  has 
put  an  end  to  all  sacrifices  and  offerings  by  way  of  expia- 
tion for  sin,  because  they  are  not  wanted,  one  death  has 
accomplished  it  all.  Beloved,  what  joy  is  here  ?  Suffering, 
suffering  to  the  death,  the  suffering  of  the  Son  of  God,  a 
suffering  ordained  of  God  to  be  the  vicarious  sacrifice,*  and  a 
suffering  which  is  perfect  and  complete  !  Let  us  look  at  the 
token,  and  let  our  hearts  be  glad  within  us  henceforth  and 
forever.  One  of  our  kings  once  gave  a  ring  to  his  favorite, 
and  said  to  him,  "  I  know  that  at  the  council  to-morrow  a 
charge  of  heresy  will  be  brought  against  you  ;  but,  when  you 
come  in,  answer  them  if  you  will,  but  you  need  be  in  no 
fear  :  if  you  find  yourself  brought  to  a  strait,  simply  show 
them  the  ring,  and  they  will  go  no  further."  It  is  even 
so  with  us ;  the  Lord  has  given  us  the  precious  blood  of 
Christ  to  be  like  a  ruby  ring  upon  our  finger,  and  now  we 
know  how  far  conscience  may  go,  and  how  far  accusations 
from  Satan  may  go  ;  we  have  only  to  produce  that  token 
and  bar  all  further  proceedings.  "  He  that  believeth  in  him" 
is  not  condemned,"  neither  can  he  be.  God  cannot  and  will 
not  go  back  from  his  promise,  the  blood  is  the  faithful  assur- 
ance of  the  security  of  all  the  saints. 

III.  But  now,  thirdly,  this  is  A  most  significant  to- 
ken. Tokens  generally  mean  something  ;  some  inner  sense 
is  implied  in  them.    Now,  our  token  of  the  blood  means  four 


254 


THE  SACRED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


things.  When  the  Jew  struck  the  blood  upon  the  lintel  and 
the  side-posts  he  meant  redemption  ;  he  did  as  good  as  say, 
"We  are  redeemed  by  blood,  the  people  who  live  in  this 
house  are  free,  they  have  been  slaves  but  they  are  redeemed, 
and  they  are  going  out  to-morrow  morning,  and  old  Pharaoh 
and  all  his  army  cannot  hold  them."  That  is  just  what  the 
blood  of  Jesus  Christ  means  to  us.  We  are  bought  and  paid 
for,  and  we  are  a  free  people,  and  if  the  Son  has  made  us 
free  we  are  free  indeed.  "  0  Lord,  I  am  thy  servant,  I  am 
thy  servant,  thou  hast  loosed  my  bonds."  Thou  hast  brought 
me  up  out  of  the  house  of  bondage,  and  out  of  the  iron  fur- 
nace, and  broken  all  my  chains — the  sprinkled  blood  de- 
clares it. 

Then  the  blood  meant  next  that  the  people  who  lived 
beneath  that  sign  belonged  to  God.  It  was  the  mark  of  the 
Lord's^  property  :  "  ye  are  not  your  own,  ye  are  bought  with  £ 
price."  He  who  redeemed  us  ought  to  possess  us.  The 
blood  when  it  bought  us  also  set  us  apart  to  be  forever 
the  property  of  the  Redeemer.  Whenever  you  think  of 
Jesus  crucified  think  of  yourself  also  as  crucified  to  the 
world,  as  no  more  belonging  to  self  or  sin  or  Satan ;  no 
longer  bound  by  worldly  customs,  fashions,  maxims,  laws, 
but  under  law  to  Christ,  for  you  are  the  Lord's  freeman. 
Give  up  the  members  of  your  body  to  his  service,  yield  them 
as  servants  unto  righteousness,  because  you  have  been  pur- 
chased, spirit,  soul,  and  body,  not  with  corruptible  things  as 
with  silver  and  gold,  but  with  the  precious  blood  of  Christ 
as  of  a  lamb  without  blemish,  and  without  spot.  The  token 
set  forth  our  redemption,  and  also  God's  property  in  us. 

This  token  next  means  acceptance.  He  who  has  the  blood 
of  Christ  sprinkled  on  him  has  that  to  show  which  renders 
him  acceptable  before  the  Lord.  There  has  been  a  war,  and 
a  wounded  soldier  comes  home,  and  he  goes  to  the  house  of 
a  father  and  mother  who  have  a  son  out  in  the  army,  and  lie 
inquires,  "Does  so-and-so  live  here?"    "Yes."    "Can  I 


THE  SACKED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


255 


see  him  ?"  "  Yes."  "  I  have  a  letter  from  your  son,  whom 
I  left  in  the  army,  he  was  my  dear  comrade."  "Are  you 
sure  you  have  such  a  letter  ?  "  The  man  looks  disreputable, 
and  his  garments  are  torn,  and  he  is  evidently  very  poor,  but 
he  replies,  "Yes,  I  have  a  letter  from  your  son."  He  puts 
his  hands  into  his  pockets,  and  he  cannot  find  it.  The 
master  of  the  house  is  angry,  and  says,  "  It  is  of  no  use  your 
coming  here  with  this  tale,  you  are  deceiving  me."  He 
fumbles  still  in  his  pockets,  and  at  last  he  brings  it  out. 
Yes,  there  is  the  token,  the  father  knows  the  handwriting 
of  his  dear  boy.  The  letter  says,  "Father,  this  is  a  choice 
companion  of  mine,  and  I  want  you,  when  he  reaches  home, 
to  treat  him  kindly  for  my  sake.  Tell  mother  that  anything 
she  does  for  him  shall  be  the  -same  as  if  she  had  done  it  to 
her  own  boy."  See  you  how  well  he  is  received  at  sight  of 
that  token.,  and  even  so  when  we  present  the  blood- mark,  we 
say  to  the  Lord,  "There  is  the  token  that  we  are  Jesus' 
friends,"  and  the  Lord  does  not  look  at  the  rags  in  which 
our  poor  nature  is  arrayed,  but  he  looks  at  the  token  of  his 
own  Son's  blood  and  accepts  us  for  his  sake.  What  surer  and 
more  suggestive  token  could  we  desire  ?  When  cleansed  in 
the  blood  of  Jesus  we  are  comely  with  his  comeliness,  and 
dear  to  the  heart  of  God  for  his  Son's  sake. 

Yes,  beloved,  it  moreover  means  perfect  safety.  As  soon 
as  ever  the  blood  was  on  the  lintel  those  inside  the  house 
were  perfectly  secure  ;  the  angel  could  not  strike  them,  for 
if  he  had  done  so  he  would  have  struck  his  Master,  and 
insulted  the  Lord  of  angels.  To  use  his  sword  while  the 
divine  shield  was  exhibited  outside  the  door  would  have 
been  to  bid  defiance  to  God's  honor,  and  that  no  angel  of 
God  would  ever  do.  Oh,  brethren,  there  is  no  shield  for  a 
guilty  soul  like  the  blood-red  shield  of  the  atonement.  Stand 
beneath  the  purple  canopy  of  sacrifice,  and  the  great  hail- 
stones of  wrath  can  never  fall  upon  you,  you  must  be  safe  if 
Christ's  atonement  interposes  between  you  and  God.    So  you 


256 


THE  SACRED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


see  the  sprinkled  blood  is  a  very  significant  token.  As  I 
went  awhile  ago  through  a  piece  of  forest  much  overgrown 
with  underwood  and  saplings,  I  noticed  certain  straight  young 
trees  distinguished  by  a  red  mark,  and  I  discovered  that  the 
woodmen  were  about  to  cut  down  all  the  underwood  and 
clear  the  ground  for  the  better  growth  of  the  timber,  and 
these  marked  trees  were  to  be  spared  to  become  large  oaks. 
I  can  see  the  red  marks  and  the  small  trees  in  my  mind's 
eye  at  this  moment,  and  there  come  the  woodmen  chopping 
down  everything  with  their  axes  and  billhooks.  Down  goes 
all  the  brushwood,  and  many  a  pole  falls  too,  but  they  stop 
at  the  marked  trees,  these  must  not  be  touched,  the  red 
mark  saves  them.  So  it  is  with  you  and  with  me  if  we  have 
known  the  sprinkling  of  the  blood,  the  Lord  will  not  only 
say,  "Let  them  alone  this  year  also,"  but  he  will  say  to  the 
destroyers,  "  Come  not  nigh  unto  those  upon  whom  is  the 
mark."  By  this  token  you  may  know  that  you  shall  live  and 
not  die.  Like  Eahab,  we  hang  this  scarlet  line  in  our  win- 
dow, and  when  all  Jericho  goes  down  with  terrible  destruc- 
tion our  house  must  stand,  for  the  red  line  secures  it  evermore. 

IV.  The  fourth  point  is  that  the  blood  is  a  love  token. 
The  blood  is  a  token  of  ancient  love,  for  it  was  shed  eighteen 
hundred  years  and  more  ago.  Oh  my  soul,  the  Lord  has  given 
thee  an  ancient  token  which  sets  forth  his  great  love  where- 
with he  loved  thee,  even  when  thou  wast  dead  in  trespasses 
and  sins.  Before  thou  wast  born  the  blood  was  poured  forth, 
which  is  to-day  the  ensign  and  pledge  of  everlasting  love. 

It  is  a  token  of  intense  love,  for  it  is  a  pledge  taken  from 
the  heart  of  Christ,  and  it  denotes  not  the  love  of  the  lip, 
not  love  which  begins  and  ends  with  outward  deeds  of  mercy, 
but  a  love  which  wells  up  from  the  essence  of  the  Redeemer's 
being,  from  his  inmost  heart,  which  was  reached  by  the  cruel 
spear.  What  a  token  is  this,  a  token  taken  not  from  the 
lilies  of  my  Lord's  garden,  nor  from  the  jewels  of  his  crown, 
nor  even  from  the  hair  of  his  head,  but  drawn  from  the 


THE  SACRED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


257 


inner  sanctuary  of  his  soul,  from  that  Holy  of  Holies,  the 
heart  of  Emanuel,  'God  with  us.  Oh  believer,  since  thou  hast 
such  a  token  as  this  thou  shouldst  be  ready  to  die  sooner  than 
doubt  the  love  of  the  Lord. 

It  is  a  token,  too,  of  mighty  love,  for  it  testifies  that  he 
who  gave  it  possessed  a  conquering  flame  of  love,  which  many 
waters  could  not  quench  nor  death  itself  destroy.  See,  he 
gives  you  the  blood  which  is  the  token  of  death,  his  death 
for  you,  and  thus  shows  that  he  went  to  the  grave  for  your 
sake,  "and  death  by  dying  slew."  Wear  this  token  next 
your  heart,  I  pray  you,  for  it  is  the  richest  that  was  ever 
given  by  the  hand  of  love  to  the  choicest  object  of  affection. 
0  thou  who  art  Well-beloved,  thou  hast  loved  us  even  to  the 
end,  for  thou  hast  loved  us  to  the  death. 

It  is  a  token,  too,  of  a  wise  all-seeing  love,  for  it  shows 
that  our  Lord  knows  our  sin,  and  has  met  it  all.  When  he 
gives  us  the  blood  he  does  as  much  as  declare,  "My  child,  I 
am  aware  of  the  evil  which  is  in  thee,  for  I  have  suffered  its 
penalty ;  I  know  thy  sin,  but  thou  shalt  know  it  no  more, 
for  I  have  carried  it  away,  and  cast  it  into  the  depths  of  the 
sea."  By  this  token  believers  know  that  their  sin  is  covered, 
and  that  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord  they  are  "  all  fair,"  for  he 
has  cleansed  them  from  every  stain.  The  day  is  come  when  if 
their  sin  was  searched  for  it  shall  not  be  found,  yea,  it  shall 
not  so  much  as  exist,  for  the  blood  has  washed  them  white. 

And  it  is  the  token  of  a  love  unlimited  which  will  deny 
nothing  to  its  object.  "  He  that  spared  not  his  own  Son, 
but  freely  delivered  him  up  for  us  all,  how  shall  he  not  with 
him  also  freely  give  us  all  things  ?  "  If  you  have  received 
the  blood  of  his  dear  Son,  what  will  the  Lord  refuse  you  ? 
Do  you  think  your  God  will  deny  you  providential  mercies 
when  he  has  already  given  the  bleeding  heart  of  Jesus  to 
redeem  you  ?  Do  you  imagine  that  he  will  leave  you  with- 
out bread  and  water,  or  garments  to  cover  your  backs,  when 
he  has  yielded  up  the  jewel  of  his  soul,  the  delight  of  his 


258 


THE  SACRED  LOVE-TOKEN 


heart,  to  you  ?  Prize  the  token,  of  his  love,  and  look  at 
it  till  your  soul  weeps  for  very  joy.  Blessed  is  that  man 
to  whom  the  Lord  has  said,  "  The  blood  shall  be  to  you  for 
a  token." 

V.  Lastly,  it  is  a  token  of  recognition.  The  man 
who  has  this  token  is  known  to  the  angels  as  one  of  the  heirs 
of  salvation  to  whom  they  minister.  As  soon  as  they  see  the 
blood  applied  to  the  soul  by  faith,  there  is  joy  among  them, 
for  this  is  a  sure  sign  of  repentance.  All  God's  children 
have  this  family  mark  at  their  birth,  and  there  is  no  mistak- 
ing it,  so  that  at  the  sight  of  it  the  angelic  guardians  com- 
mence their  tender  care,  and  begin  to  bear  up  the  newly 
begotten  one  in  their  hands  lest  at  any  time  he  dash  his  foot 
against  a  stone.  The  devil  also  knows  that  mark,  and,  as 
soon  as  he  sees  it,  he  begins  to  assail  the  man  who  bears  it, 
seeking  in  all  sorts  of  ways  to  destroy  him.  If  the  believer 
be  not  destroyed,  it  will  not  be  for  lack  of  enmity  or  industry 
on  the  devil's  part.  He  knows  the  mark  of  the  "  seed  of  the 
woman,"  and  he  roars  and  rages,  but  at  the  same  time  he 
trembles,  for  well  he  knows  that  he  cannot  prevail.  At  the 
sight  of  the  sacrificial  token  the  great  enemy  stands  con- 
founded ;  like  a  raging  lion  he  would  fain  devour  the  sheep 
of  the  Lord,  but  the  mark  of  the  blood  upon  them  saves 
them  from  his  teeth. 

And,  brethren,  this  blood-mark  is  known  among  the  saints 
themselves,  and  has  a  wonderful  power  for  creating  and  fos- 
tering mutual  love.  I  have  often  noticed  that  as  soon  as  we 
begin  to  discourse  upon  the  atoning  death  of  our  divine  Lord, 
we  are  at  home  with  one  another.  There  may  be  brethren 
present  from  various  churches,  and  they  may  not  be  well  at 
ease  when  we  handle  other  subjects,  but  when  we  come  to 
the  precious  blood  we  come  to  the  heart  of  the  matter,  and 
are  all  at  one.  This  is  one  of  the  secret  signs  of  our  spiritual 
freemasonry.  I  have  had  my  heart  warmed  and  cheered 
against  my  own  will  sometimes  by  devout  writers,  whose 


THE  SACKED  LOVE-TOKEN.  259 

doctrinal  theories  I  do  not  believe,  and  whose  church  I 
could  not  join,  and  yet  when  they  write  about  my  Lord  they 
win  my  heart.  "  Aliquicl  Christi"  as  one  old  divine  used 
to  say :  the  something  of  Christ  in  them  awakens  our  affec- 
tions and  draws  us  nigh.  Even  books  which  are  corrupt 
with  sacramentarianism  have  occasionally  such  a  sweet  savor 
of  Christ  in  them  that  we  cannot  utterly  cast  them  away, 
I  but  feel  bound  very  carefully  to  pare  the  apple,  and  cut  out 
the  rotten  places,  and  remove  the  objectionable  core,  for  the 
sake  of  the  sweet  morsels  flavored  with  the  love  of  Christ. 
As  the  sweet  honey-bearing  flowers  attract  the  bees,  so  does 
the  name  of  Jesus  draw  all  his  saints  to  him,  and  so  to  each 
other.  Give  me  your  hand,  my  brother,  if  you  also  know 
my  Lord  we  belong  to  the  same  family,  the  infallible  mark 
of  the  redeemed  is  upon  us  both. 

Best  of  all,  the  Lord  knows  this  token  too.  When  we  go 
to  the  mercy-seat,  if  we  would  prosper  we  must  produce  the 
sacred  passport  of  the  precious  blood.  With  this  it  is  impos- 
sible to  fail.  The  Primitive  Methodist  brother  when  he 
was  in  a  meeting  where  a  friend  could  not  pray,  cried  out, 
"  Plead  the  blood,  brother  ! "  and  the  advice  was  wise.  Ay, 
plead  you  that,  and  say,  "  For  Jesus'  sake  :  by  his  agony 
and  bloody  sweat,  by  his  cross  and  passion."  What  mighty 
blows  are  given  to  the  gate  of  heaven  by  that  batteriug-ram. 
These  are  arguments  to  which  heaven  always  yields. 

.  Our  God  recognizes  the  blood-mark  in  the  hour  of  death, 
and  attends  his  people  through  the  solemn  article.  Death's 
terrors  are  gone  to  him  who  has  the  blood  for  a  token.  Lay 
me  down  on  my  bed  !  There  let  me  endure  the  allotted  pain 
and  weakness,  till  the  clammy  sweat  stands  on  my  brow,  and 
needs  to  be  constantly  wiped  away  :  lay  me  down,  I  say,  and 
I  will  calmly  fall  asleep  like  a  child  tired  with  a  day's  play, 
if  I  have  but  the  token.  Distresses  and  poverty  and  anguish 
of  body  may  molest  me,  yet  shall  I  be  perfectly  at  ease,  and 
ask  for  no  exchange.    Whence  is  this  ?   Many  a  man  pos- 


260 


THE  SACRED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


sessed  of  health  and  wealth  is  not  one-half  so  blessed  as  the 
poor  saint  upon  his  death  pallet.  Whence  comes  this  blessed- 
ness ?  Here  is  the  secret.  The  Lord  has  passed  by,  and  given 
a  token.  "  A  token,"  say  you,  "  what  is  it  ?  Is  it  some  line 
extracted  from  the  golden  book  of  God's  election  ?  Is  it  a 
gem  taken  from  the  diadem  which  is  prepared  for  him  in 
heaven  ? "  No,  no,  it  is  not  this.  "  Has  he  in  his  sleep 
beheld  a  vision  and  seen  the  shining  ones  walking  the  golden 
streets,  or  has  he  heard  an  audible  celestial  voice  saying  to 
him,  "  Thou  art  mine  ?"  No,  he  has  none  of  these,  he  has 
neither  dream  nor  vision  nor  anything  that  men  can  call 
superhuman,  but  he  is  resting  in  the  precious  blood,  and 
this  blood  is  the  token  of  friendship  between  God  and  his 
soul ;  by  this  he  knows  the  love  of  God,  and  by  this  God 
communes  with  him.  They  meet  at  the  blood.  God  de- 
lights in  the  sacrifice  of  Christ,  and  the  believing  soul 
delights  in  it  too  ;  they  have  thus  a  common  love  and  a 
common  joy,  and  this  has  bound  the  two  together  by  a  bond 
which  can  never  be  broken.  This  it  is  which  makes  some  of 
us  sing — 

"  And  when  I'm  to  die, 
Receive  me,  I'll  cry, 
For  Jesus  lias  loved  me, 
I  cannot  tell  why  ; 
But  this  thing  I  find, 
We  two  are  so  joined, 
He  won't  be  in  heaven 
And  leave  me  behind." 

Oh  what  a  blessing  to' feel  that  the  blood  of  Jesus  has  united 
us  to  him  eternally. 

Suffer  this  last  word.  Some  of  you  perhaps  have  said, 
"  Oh,  I  wish  I  had  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  for  a  token." 
Then  let  me  tell  you  first  that  you  have  not  to  provide  a 
sacrifice,  for  that  is  done,  the  lamb  is  slain,  the  blood  of  the 
everlasting  is  ever  before  the  presence  of  God.    What  have 


THE  SACRED  LOVE-TOKEN. 


261 


i  you  to  do  ?  You  have  nothing  to  do  but  to  have  the  blood 
sprinkled  upon  you.  You  know  how  they  sprinkled  it,  it 
was  with  a  bunch  of  hyssop.  Hyssop  is  a  common  herb  to 
be  found  everywhere  in  and  around  eastern  cities,  growing 
even  on  walls  where  but  little  soil  is  found.  It  was  a  plant 
with  a  great  many  stalks,  so  that  it  would  hold  the  blood  and 
act  as  a  sort  of  brush  ;  indeed,  its  only  excellence  was  its 
power  to  hold  the  blood.  Now,  faith  is  a  very  simple  thing, 
and  it  is  the  act  not  of  refined  and  educated  minds  only,  but 
of  the  poorest  and  simplest.  The  efficacy  of  the  hyssop  did 
not  lie  in  what  the  hyssop  was,  but  in  its  being  put  into  the 
basin  to  drink  up  the  blood.  My  poor  faith  is  just  as  com- 
mon as  a  bit  of  hyssop  pulled  up  from  the  wall,  but  then  I 
lay  it  asoak  in  the  atonement ;  while  I  muse  upon  who  Jesus 
was,  and  what  he  suffered,  and  for  what  purpose,  till  it  is 
wet,  saturated,  all  becrimsoned  with  the  vital  flood.  The 
hyssop  was  an  insignificant  item  in  the  whole  business,  it  is 
only  mentioned  once,  the  second  time  the  sprinkling  is  com- 
manded it  is  not  mentioned  at  all  ;  and  so  after  all  faith  is 
but  the  humble  instrument  of  salvation  ;  the  blood  is  the 
main  matter,  it  is  the  life,  the  shelter,  the  token,  the  every- 
thing. Let  your  trembling  faith  lay  asoak  in  the  precious 
blood  and  then  say,  "I  believe  thee,  Jesus,  and  I  tell  the 
world  !  do  believe  thee.  Sinner  as  I  am,  thy  precious  blood 
was  shed  for  me,  and  I  trust  in  thee  alone."  Thus  you 
crimson  the  lintel  and  the  door-posts.  Let  all  men  know 
that  whatever  you  may  have  been,  and  whatever  you  now 
are,  you  do  now  believe  in  the  substitutionary  death  of  Jesus, 
oppose  you  who  may.  Witness,  ye  men  and  angels  and 
devils,  that  Jesus'  blood  is  our  sole  hope.  He  who  thus  be- 
lieves is  saved.  Brother,  go  your  way,  and  leap  for  joy. 
No  man  ever  perished  who  from  his  heart  rested  in  the  aton- 
ing blood.    God  bless  you.  Amen. 


SERMON  XIV. 


THE  LION-SLAYER— THE  GIANT-KILLER. 

Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 
ington. 

"  Thy  servant  slew  both  the  lion  and  the  bear  :  and  this  uncircum- 
cised  Philistine  shall  be  as  one  of  them,  seeing  he  has  defied  the  ar- 
mies of  the  living  God.  David  said  moreover,  the  Lord  that  delivered 
me  out  of  the  paw  of  the  lion  and  out  of  the  paw  of  the  bear,  he  will 
deliver  me  out  of  the  hand  of  this  Philistine." — 1  Samuel,  xvii.  36,  37. 

We  have  all  thought  a  great  deal  of  the  courage  of  David 
in  meeting  giant  Goliath,  but  probably  we  have  not  given 
him  credit  for  his  conduct  in  a  previous  contest.  We  have 
not  sufficiently  noticed  that  immediately  before  the  encounter 
with  the  Philistine  he  fought  a  battle  which  cost  him  far 
more  thought,  prudence,  and  patience.  The  word-battle  in 
which  he  had  to  engage  with  his  brothers  and  with  king 
Saul,  was  a  more  trying  ordeal  to  him  than  going  forth  in 
the  strength  of  the  Lord  to  smite  the  uncircumcised  boaster. 
Many  a  man  meets  with  more  trouble  from  his  friends  than 
from  his  enemies  ;  and  when  he  has  learned  to  overcome  the 
depressing  influence  of  prudent  friends,  he  makes  short  work 
of  the  opposition  of  avowed  adversaries. 

Observe  that  David  had  first  to  contend  with  his  own 
brothers.  I  hardly  think  Eliab  was  so  much  swayed  by 
envy  as  has  been  supposed.    I  fancy  that  Eliab  had  too  much 


THE  LION- SLATER — THE  GIANT  KILLER.  263 

contempt  for  his  young  brother  to  envy  him  ;  he  thought  it 
ridiculous  that  a  youth  so  given  to  music  and  piety  and  gentle 
pursuits  should  dream  of  encountering  a  giant.  He  derided 
the  idea  of  his  being  equal  to  such  a  task,  and  only  feared 
lest  in  a  moment  of  foolish  enthusiasm  he  might  throw  his 
life  away  in  -  the  mad  enterprise  ;  and  therefore  Eliab  some- 
what superciliously,  but  still  somewhat  in  the  spirit  natural 
to  an  elder  brother  who  feels  himself  a  sort  of  guardian  to 
the  younger  members  of  the  house,  chided  him  and  told  him 
that  only  pride  and  curiosity  had  brought  him  there  at  all, 
and  that  he  had  better  have  remained  with  his  sheep  in  the 
wilderness.  Such  a  youth  he  thought  was  fitter  among 
lambs  than  among  warriors,  and  more  likely  to  be  in  his 
place  beneath  a  tree  with  his  shepherd's  pipe  than  in  the 
midst  of  a  battle.  David  met  this  charge  in  the  very 
wisest  way  :  he  answered  with  a  few  soft  words,  and  then 
turned  away.  He  did  not  continue  to  argue,  for  in  such  a 
contest  to  multiply  words  is  to  increase  ill  feeling,  and  he 
who  is  first  silent  is  the  conqueror.  Grandly  did  this  young 
man  restrain  himself,  though  the  provocation  was  very  severe, 
and  herein  he  won  the  honors  of  the  man  who  restrains  his 
spirit,  and  he  is  greater  than  a  soldier  who  takes  a  city.  I 
admire  David  as  he  selects  his  five  smooth  stones  from  the 
brook,  and  I  admire  him  quite  as  much  when  he  so  gently 
replies  where  others  might  have  been  angry,  and  then  so 
wisely  turns  aside  from  a  debate  which  could  not  have  been 
to  the  profit  of  either  party. 

Next,  he  is  brought  before  Saul,  and  David  enters  upon 
a.  contest  with  a  king,  to  whom  he  felt  loyal  respect,  and 
with  a  soldier  who  had  been  a  man  of  war  from  his  youth  up, 
and  had  wrought  many  famous  deeds,  one,  therefore,  to 
whom  David  looked  up  with  not  a  little  reverence.  When 
king  Saul  said  to  him,  "  Thou  art  not  able  to  fight  with 
this  Philistine,  for  thou  art  but  a  youth  and  he  a  man  of 
war  from  his  youth,"  it  must  have  been  difficult  for  the 


264  THE  LION-SLAYER— THE  GIANT  KILLER. 

young  hero  to  cope  with  the  weighty  judgment ;  and  yet  he 
did  so,  answering  meekly,  forcibly,  and  in  all  respects  well 
Did  you  notice  how  David  said  to  Saul,  "  Let  no  man  s  heart 
fail  because  of  him."    He  did  not  say,  "Let  not  thy  heart 
fail  thee  ;"  he  was  too  much  of  a  courtier  for  that,  he  had 
too  much  delicacy  of  mind  to  insinuate  that  a  royal  heart 
could  fear.    When  he  proceeded  to  argue  with  the  king 
it  was  in  the  most  polite  and  deferential  manner.    He  be- 
gins, "Thy  servant  kept  his  father's  sheep  ;"  he  calls  him- 
self a  servant  of  the  king,  and  does  not  hesitate  to  own  that 
he  is  only  a  shepherd  who  had  no  flock  of  his  own,  but 
served  under  his  father.    There  was  nothing  like  assump- 
tion, but  the  very  reverse.    Yet  while  he  used  soft  words  he 
brought  forth  hard  arguments ;  he  mentioned  facts,  and 
these  are  always  the  best  weapons  against  carnal  reasoning. 
Saul  said,  "  Thou  art  not  able  to  meet  this  Philistine  ;  but 
David  replied,  "  Thy  servant  slew  both  the  lion  and  the 
bear."  He  placed  facts  against  mere  opinions,  and  won  the 
day     He  did  not  quote  Scripture  to  the  king,  for  I  suppose 
he  knew  Saul  too  well  for  that,  and  felt  that  he  had  not  grace 
enough  to  be  swayed  by  the  promises  and  examples  of  Holy 
Writ  •  but  he  brou-ht  facts  before  him,  knowing  well  how  to 
give  a  reason  for  the  hope  that  was  in  him  with  meekness 
and  fear     His  arguments  quite  overcame  the  opposition  oi 
Saul,  which  would  have  damped  the  enthusiasm  of  many 
and  Saul  not  only  commissioned  him  to  go  and  fight  tin 
Philistine,  saying,  "  Go,  and  the  Lord  be  with  thee  ;"  bu 
he  actually  clothed  him  in  his  royal  armor,  which  was  o 
no  small  value,  and  which  of  course  would  have  increase 
the  honors  of  the  Philistine  champion  had  David  falle 
before  him.    Some   little  faith  in  David  was  kindled  i 
Saul's  bosom,  and  he  was  willing  to  trust  his  armor  i 
his  hands.    Thus  it  is  clear  that  David  fought  the  batM 
with  Saul  as  admirably  as  he  afterwards  conducted  his  du< 
with  the  giant,  and  he  deserves  no  small  honor  for  it ;  na; 


THE  LION-SLAYER — THE  GIANT  KILLER.  265 

ather  unto  God  be  honor  who  while  he  taught  his  servant's 
ands  to  war,  and  his  fingers  to  fight,  also  taught  his  tongue 
3  utter  right  words,  by  which  he  put  to  silence  those  who 
rould  have  abashed  him. 

What  was  the  pith  of  David's  argument  ?  What  were 
le  five  smooth  stones  which  he  threw  at  the  head  of  carnal 
3asoning?  That  shall  be  the  subject  of  this  morning's 
iscourse.  We  will  consider  the  way  in  which  David  argued 
own  all  doubts  and  fears,  and  by  the  Spirit  of  God  was 
erved  to  go  forth  to  do  deeds  of  sacred  daring  in  the  name 
E  the  Most  High,  for  the  same  conquering  arguments  may, 
erhaps,  serve  our  turn  also. 

Three  things  are  before  us  in  the  text,  recollections,  rea- 
mings,  and  nesults. 

I.  First,  recollections.  "Thy  servant  kept  Ids  father's 
keep,  and  there  came  a  lion,  and  a  hear,  and  took  a  lamb  out 
r  the  flock  :  and  I  went  after  him,  and  smote  him,  and  deliv- 
-ed  it  out  of  his  mouth :  and  tvhen  he  arose  against  me,  1 
lught  him  by  his  beard  and  smote  him,  and  slew  him.  Thy 
wfiant  slew  both  the  lion  and  the  bear."  These  were  note- 
orthy  facts  which  David  had  stored  up  in  his  memory,  and 
e  now  mentions  them,  for  they  exactly  answered  his  pur- 
ose.  We  ought  not  to  be  unmindful  of  the  way  by  which  the 
iord  our  God  has  led  us,  for  if  we  are  we  shall  lose  much, 
ome  saints  have  very  short  memories.  It  has  been  well 
lid  that  we  write  our  benefits  in  dust  and  our  injuries  in 
larble,  and  it  is  equally  true  that  we  generally  inscribe  our 
Mictions  upon  brass,  while  the  records  of  the  deliverances 
J  God  are  written  in  water.  It  ought  not  so  to  be.  If  our 
lemories  were  more  tenacious  of  the  merciful  visitations  of 
ar  God,  our  faith  would  often  be  strengthened  in  times  of 
gal.  Now,  what  did  David  recollect,  for  I  want  you  to 
^member  the  same  ? 

He  recollected,  first,  that  whatever  his  present  trial  might 
5,  he  had  been  tried  before,  tried  when  he  was  but  a,  young 
12 


266 


THE  LION-SLAYER  TIIE  GIANT  KILLER. 


man,  peacefully  employed  in  keeping  his  flocks.  A  lion 
rushed  upon  his  prey  and  he  had  to  defend  his  sheep  ; — no 
small  trial  that  for  a  young  man,  to  have  to  meet  a  savage 
beast,  strong,  furious,  and  probably  ravenous  with  hunger. 
Yet  the  ordeal  had  not  destroyed  him,  and  he  felt  sure  that 
another  of  the  same  kind  would  not  do  so.  He  had  encoun- 
tered that  danger  in  the  course  of  his  duty,  when  he  was  in 
his  proper  place,  and  engaged  in  his  lawful  calling,  and  he 
had  thereby  learned  that  the  path  of  duty  is  not  without  its 
difficulties  and  perils.  He  was  keeping  his  flock  as  he  ought 
to  be,  and  yet  a  lion  attacked  him ;  and  so  you  and  I  have 
met  with  trials  which  did  not  arise  from  sin,  but,  on  the  other 
hand,  came  to  us  because  we-  conscientiously  did  the  right, 
and  would  not  yield  to  temptation.  We  must  not  think 
that  we  are  out  of  the  right  road  when  we  meet  with  difficul- 
ties, for  we  must  expect  through  much  tribulation  to  inherit 
the  kingdom  of  God.  Severe  afflictions  and  afflictions  arising 
out  of  holy  walking  are  not  new  things  to  us,  let  us  now 
remember  our  old  encounters. 

He  remembered,  too,  that  he  had  been  tried  frequently. 
He  had  been  not  only  attacked  by  a  lion,  but  also  by  a  bear. 
He  had  been  tried  in  different  ways,  for  lions  and  bears  do 
not  fight  exactly  in  the  same  manner,  neither  are  they  to  be 
met  with  precisely  the  same  tactics.  David  remembered 
that  his  trials  had  been  of  different  sorts,  and  that  in  each 
case  the  battle  had  been  hard.  It  was  no  small  matter  to 
fight  hand  to  hand  with  a  lion,  and  no  child's  play  to  rush 
single-handed'  upon  a  bear.  We,  also,  in  looking  back,  re- 
member sharp  encounters  with  foes  of  many  kinds,  which 
were  terrible  battles  to  us  at  the  time.  Brethren,  some  of  us 
who  have  been  for  years  in  the  ways  of  the  Lord  can  tell 
of  shrewd  brushes  with  the  enemy,  and  we  can  speak  of 
wounds  and  ugly  rents,  of  which  we  wear  the  scars  to  this 
day.  Many  have  been  our  adversaries  and  furious,  yet  have 
we  been  upheld  till  now  by  Jesus,  the  Captain  of  our  salva- 


THE  LION-SLAYER  THE  GIANT  KILLER.  267 

fcion.  "Wherefore,  then,  should  we  fear  concerning  the 
present  fiery  trial,  as  though  some  strange  thing  had  hap- 
pened to  us.  Is  it  a  Philistine  this  time  ?  "Well,  it  was  a 
lion  before,  and  a  bear  on  another  occasion  :  it  is  only  a 
little  change  of  the  same  constant  trial  of  our  faith,  and 
therefore  let  us  not  shrink  from  the  conflict. 

Next,  David  recollected  that  he  had  risked  all  in  the 
prosecution  of  h  is  duty.  He  was  set  to  take  care  of  the  sheep 
and  the  lambs,  and  he  did  so.  A  lion  had  dared  to  leap  into 
the  fold  and  seize  a  lamb,  and  without  a  single  thought  of 
anything  but  the  lamb  and  his  own  duty,  the  young  shepherd 
rushed  upon  the  monster  with  all  the  ardor  of  youth,  and 
smiting  him  with  his  crook  compelled  him  to  drop  his  prey. 
He  had  put  his  own  life  in  jeopardy  for  the  poor  defenceless 
lamb.  Can  you  not  recollect,  my  Christian  brethren,  when 
you  also  took  no  thought  as  to  what  you  should  lose  if  you 
followed  Christ,  and  cared  uot  if  it  cost  you  your  very  life  ? 
"With  earnest  honesty  you  desired  to  learn  what  you  ought  to 
do,  and  you  did  it,  careless  of  the  cost.  Reproach,  slander, 
misrepresentations,  and  unkindness  you  defied,  so  long  as 
you  could  but  clear  your  conscience  and  honor  your  Lord. 
0  blessed  recklessness  !  Do  you  remember  those  early  days 
when  you  could  cheerfully  have  gone  to  prison  and  to  death 
for  Christ's  sake  ?  For  Scriptural  doctrines,  and  ordinances 
you  would  willingly  have  suffered  martyrdom.  Perhaps 
some  of  you  have  on  more  than  one  occasion  actually  risked 
everything  for  the  sake  of  integrity  and  for  the  honor 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  even  as  others  have  defied  the 
utmost  power  of  Satan,  and  the  most  virulent  hatred  of  men 
for  the  sake  of  the  Lord  God  of  Hosts.  You  have  felt  that 
you  could  sooner  die  than  deny  the  truth,  and  sooner  perish 
from  off  the  face  of  the  earth  than  be  craven  to  the  trust 
which  the  Lord  had  committed  to  you.  Look  back  upon 
your  brave  days,  my  brethren,  not  that  you  may  be  proud  of 
what  you  did,  but  that  you  may  be  ashamed  if  you  are  afraid 


268  THE  LION-SLAYER  THE  GIANT  KILLER. 

to  do  the  like  again.  Blush  if  what  you  could  do  as  a  strip- 
ling should  appear  too  hard  for  you  in  riper  years.  These 
recollections  have  precious  uses  ;  they  will  lead  us  to  bless 
God  and  humble  ourselves  in  his  presence. 

Next  he  remembered  that  he  had  on  that  occasion  gone 
alone  to  the  fray.  The  antagonist  was  a  lion,  and  a  dozen 
men  might  have  found  themselves  too  few  for  the  fight ;  but 
David  remembered  that  in  that  contest  he  was  quite  alone  : 
he  had  not  called  in  the  under  shepherds  to  the  rescue,  but 
armed  only  with  his  crook,  he  had  belabored  the  lion  till  the 
monster  found  it  convenient  to  leave  his  prey  and  turn  upon 
the  young  shepherd.  David  was  ready  for  him,  seized  him 
by  his  beard,  dashed  his  head  upon  the  rocks,  and  did  not 
relinquish  his  grasp  till  the  king  of  beasts  lay  dead  at  his 
feet.  It  was  a  grand  incident,  even  had  it  stood  alone,  but 
a  bear  had  supplied  an  equally  memorable  trophy.  Some  of 
us  may  well  recall  hours  in  our  past  lives  when  we  were 
all  alone,  and,  as  we  went  forth  to  serve  the  Lord  Jesus,  our 
enterprise  was  regarded  as  Utopian  and  spoken  of  as  sure  to 
end  in  failure.  Many  a  good  man  has  gone  forth  for  Christ's 
sake  even  worse  than  alone,  for  those  who  should  have  aided 
have  done  their  best  to  criticise  and  prophesy  disaster  ;  but 
men  whom  God  ordains  to  honor  have  shut  their  ears  to 
critics,  pushed  on  till  they  have  reached  success,  and  then 
everybody  has  said,  "  We  always  thought  so,"  and  not  a  few 
have  even  claimed  J;o  have  been  ardent  admirers  all  along. 
Brother,  do  you  remember  when  every  one  said  you  were 
foolhardy  and  self-sufficient,  and  regarded  your  course  as 
absurd  and  sure  to  come  to  an  end  ?  Six  months  were  to 
see  the  end  of  your  career,  which  was  a  mere  bubble  and 
would  soon  collapse  ?  Ah,  those  were  brave  times  when  the 
Lord  was  with  you  and  man's  opinion  weighed  but  lightly. 
It  may  be  that  for  truth's  sake  your  relatives  turned  their 
backs  upon  you,  and  no  man  would  say  a  good  word,  and  yet 
in  the  name  of  the  Lord  God  of  Hosts  you  did  the  right  and 


THE  LION-SLATER— THE  GIANT  KILLER.  269 

dared  all  results,  and  you  have  had  no  cause  to  regret  it,  but 
overflowing  reason  to  bless  God  alone.  Look  back  at  that 
courageous  hour,  and  now  that  you  are  surrounded  by  a 
goodly  company  of  friends,  think  whether  you  have  as  simple 
a  trust  in  God  now  as  you  manifested  then.  If  you  judge 
that  you  have,  prove  by  your  actions  that  you  still  dare  to  go 
forward  under  difficulties,  unshackled  by  dependence  on  an 
arm  of  flesh.  The  discipline  of  desertion  ought  not  to  have 
been  lost  upon  you,  you  ought  to  be  all  the  stronger  for 
having  been  compelled  to  walk  alone.  The  friendship  of 
your  fellows  has  been  a  loss  rather  than  a  gain  if  you  cannot 
now  wage  single-handed  battle  as  you  did  in  former  times. 
Are  you  now  become  slavishly  dependent  on  an  arm  of  ilesh  ? 
If  so,  chide  yourself  by  the  memory  of  braver  days. 

David  also  recollected  that  on  that  occasion  when  he 
smote  the  lion  and  the  bear  he  had  nothing  visible  to  rely 
upon,  tut  simply  trusted  his  God.  He  had  in  his  hand 
no  sharp  weapon  of  iron  with  which  to  smite  the  wild  beast 
to  the  heart,  but  careless  as  to  weapons,  he  thought  only  of 
his  God,  and  rushed  on  the  foe.  He  was  as  yet  a  young 
man,  his  muscles  were  not  set  and  strong,  neither  did  he 
seem  fit  for  such  a  venturous  deed  :  but  his  God  was 
almighty,  and,  reliant  upon  the  omnipotence  of  God,  he 
thought  nothing  of  his  youth,  but  flung  himself  into  the 
fray.  What  more  in  the  way  of  help  did  he  need,  since  God 
was  with  him  ?  Oh,  brethren,  there  were  times  with  some 
of  us  when  we  commenced  our  work,  when  our  sole  reliance 
was  the  unseen  Lord.  We  were  cast  upon  the  invisible  power 
of  God,  and  if  that  could  fail  us  we  must  go.  Our  attempts 
were  such  as  carnal  reason  could  not  justify,  such  indeed  as 
only  divine  interposition  could  carry  through.  They  were 
right  enough  if  the  divine  power  could  be  calculated  on,  but 
apart  from  that  they  were  well  nigh  insane.  Glory  be  to 
God,  he  has  been  as  good  as  his  word,  our  faith  has  been 
justified  by  results,  and  unbelief  has  been  struck  dumb. 


270  THE  LION-SLAYER  THE  GIANT  KILLER. 

The  Lord  taught  us  to  rest  in  him  from  our  youth  up,  and 
to  declare  his  wondrous  works,  and  now  that  we  have  tried 
and  proved  his  faithfulness  we  dare  not  hide  these  things 
from  the  generation  following.  Our  witness  must  be  borne 
even  though  we  should  be  charged  with  boasting.  "  My 
soul  shall  make  her  boast  in  the  Lord."  But  can  it  be  true 
that  now  we  have  begun  coolly  to  calculate  means  and  to 
rely  upon  methods  and  plans,  whereas  once  we  looked  to 
God  alone  ?  Do  we  now  trust  in  this  friend  and  rely  on 
that,  and  distrust  the  Lord  if  friends  are  few  ?  Shame  upon 
us  if  we  do  so,  for  this  is  to  leave  the  way  of  victory  for  the 
path  of  defeat,  to  come  down  from  the  heroic  track  to  the 
common  highway  of  carnal  reasoning,  and  so  to  fall  into 
care,  fretful ness,  weakness,  and  dishonor.  Happy  is  the 
man  who  trusts  in  the  Lord  alone  by  unstaggering  faith,  he 
shall  go  from  strength  to  strength,  but  he  who  chooses  to 
walk  by  sight  shall  utterly  decay. 

David  recollected  also  that  the  tactics  which  he  adopted  on 
that  occasion  were  natural,  artless,  and  vigorous.  All  that 
he  did  was' just  to  smite  the  lion  and*  the  bear  with  his  staff, 
or  whatever  came  first  to  hand,  and  then  to  fight  as  nature 
and  the  occasion  suggested.  He  did  what  his  courage 
prompted,  without  waiting  to  consult  a  committee  of  lion- 
slayers  and  bear- trappers.  His  whole  art  was  faith  ;  this 
was  his  science  and  his  skill.  Lie  consulted  not  with  flesh 
and  blood,  followed  no  precedents,  imitated  no  noted  hunt- 
ers, and  encumbered  himself  with  no  rules,  but  he  did  his 
best  as  his  faith  in  God  directed  him.  He  threw  his  whole 
soul  into  the  conflict,  and  fought  vigorously,  for  his  faith 
did  not  make  him  sit  still,  and  expect  the  lion  to  die  in  a  fit, 
or  the  bear  to  become  insensible.  He  seemed  to  say  to  him- 
self, "  Now,  David,  if  anything  is  to  be  done,  you  must  be 
all  here,  and  every  muscle  you  have  must  be  put  to  the 
strain.  You  have  a  lion  to  fight  with,  therefore  stir  up  your 
strength,  and  while  you  rely  upon  God  alone,  take  care  to 


THE  LION-SLAYER  THE  GIANT  KILLER. 


271 


play  the  man  this  day  for  your  father's  flock."  Courage 
supplied  coolness ;  and  energy,  backed  up  by  confidence, 
won  the  day.  Do  you  remember,  my  brother,  when  in  your 
own  way  you  did  the  same  ?  You  were  reliant  upon  God 
but  not  idle,  you  put  your  whole  force  of  soul  and  energy 
into  your  Master's  service,  as  if  it  all  rested  on  you,  and  yet 
you  depended  wholly  on  him  ;  and  you  succeeded  !  How  is  it 
with  you  now  ?  Do  you  now  take  things  easily  ?  Do  you 
wonder  that  you  do  not  succeed  ?  If  you  are  growing  cold 
and  careless,  if  you  are  getting  sleepy  and  dull,  rebuke  your 
soul,  and  use  your  past  experience  as  a  whip  wherewith 
to  flog  yourself  into  energy.  Let  it  never  be  said  that  he 
who  woke  himself  up  to  fight  a  lion  now  falls  asleep  in  the 
presence  of  a  Philistine. 

David  remembered  that  by  confidence  in  God  his  energetic 
fighting  gained  the  victory — the  lion  was  killed,  and  the  bear 
was  killed  too.  And  cannot  you  remember,  brethren,  what 
victories  God  gave  you  ?  When  you  were  little  in  Israel  and 
despised,  yet  his  hand  was  upon  you,  and  when  few  would 
bid  you  God  speed,  yet  the  Jehovah  of  Hosts  encouraged 
your  heart,  and  when  you  were  feeble  and  but  a  youth, 
the  Lord  Jesus  helped  you  to  do  exploits  for  him  in  your 
own  way.  Eemember  this,  and  be  of  good  courage  this  morn- 
ing in  the  conflict  which  now  lies  before  you.  David  talked 
of  his  former  deeds  somewhat  reluctantly.  I  do  not  know 
that  he  had  ever  spoken  of  them  before,  and  he  did  so 
on  this  occasion  with  the  sole  motive  of  glorifying  God, 
and  that  he  might  be  allowed  to  repeat  them.  He  wished 
for  permission  from  Saul  to  confront  the  Philistine  cham- 
pion, and  bring  yet  greater  glory  to  God.  Brethren,  when- 
ever you  talk  of  what  God  enabled  you  to  do,  mind  you  lay 
the  stress  upon  God's  enablings,  and  not  'upon  your  own 
doings  ;  and  when  you  rehearse  the  story  of  your  early  days, 
let  it  not  be  as  a  reason  why  you  should  now  be  exonerated 
from  service,  and  be  allowed  to  retire  upon  your  laurels,  but 


272 


THE  LION-SLAYER  THE  GIANT  KILLER. 


an  argument  why  you  should  now  be  allowed  the  most 
arduous  and  dangerous  post  in  the  battle.  Let  the  past  be  a 
stepping-stone  to  something  higher,  an  incentive  to  nobler 
enterprise^  On,  on  ye  soldiers  of  the  cross,  in  God's  name 
eclipse  your  former  selves.  As  grace  enabled  you  to  pile 
the  carcass  of  the  bear  upon  the  corpse  of  the  lion,  so  now 
resolve  that  the  Philistine  shall  increase  the  heap,  and  his  head 
shall  crown  the  whole,  to  the  honor  and  glory  of  the  God  of 
Israel.  So  much  for  recollections.  I  pity  the  man  who  has 
lone  of  them,  and  I  pity  yet  more  the  man  who  having 

hem  is  now  afraid  to  risk  all  for  his  Lord. 

v 

II.  Now  for  reasonings.  David  used  an  argument  in 
which  no  flaw  can  be  found.  He  said,  "  The  case  of  this 
Philistine  is  a  parallel  one  to  that  of  the  lion.  If  I  act  in 
the  same  manner  by  faith  in  God  with  this  giant  as  I  did 
with  the  lion,  God  is  the  same,  and  therefore  the  result  will 
be  the  same."  That  seems  to  me  to  be  very  clear  reasoning, 
and  I  bid  you  adopt  it.  Such  and  such  was  my  past  diffi- 
culty, and  my  present  trouble  is  of  the  same  order  ;  in  that 
past  trial  I  rested  upon  God,  and  acted  in  a  right  way,  and 
he  delivered  me  ;  therefore,  if  I  trust  in  God  still,  and  do  as 
before,  he  is  the  same  as  ever,  and  I  shall  triumph  yet  again. 

Let  us  now  consider  the  case,  and  we  shall  see  that  it 
really  was  parallel.  There  was  the  flock,  defenceless  ;  here 
was  Israel,  God?s  flock,  defenceless  too,  with  no  one  to  take 
up  its  cause.  In  all  the  camp  there  was  not  one  single  man 
who  dared  take  up  the  foeman's  challenge.  David  was  a 
shepherd,  and,  therefore,  as  a  shepherd,  bound  to  defend  his 
flock  ;  and  in  the  present  instance  he  remembered,  I  doubt 
not,  that  Samuel  had  anointed  him  to  be  king  over  Israel, 
and  he  felt  that  some  of  the  responsibility  of  the  anointing 
rested  upon  him  even  then,  and  that  if  no  man  else  would 
play  the  shepherd  the  anointed  son  of  Jesse  must  do  it,  and 
so  it  looked  to  him  like  a  parallel  case — Israel  the  flock,  and 
he  the  shepherd  who  must  defend  it. 


THE  LION-SLAYER — THE  GIANT  KILLER. 


273 


He  was  alone  that  day  when  he  smote  the  lion,  and  so  he 
was  this  day  when  he  was  to  confront  his  enormous  foe.  Of 
course  it  was  one  of  the  conditions  of  a  duel  that  the  Israel- 
itish  champion  should  go  forth  alone,  and,  besides  that, 
there  was  no  one  in  all  the  camp  who  was  likely  to  wish  to 
accompany  him  upon  such  an  errand.  So,  now  that  he  was 
all  alone,  the  case  was  the  more  truly  parallel. 

As  for  that  Philistine,  he  felt  that  in  him  he  had  an  antag- 
onist of  the  old  sort.  It  was  brute  force  before,  it  was  brute 
force  now  :  it  might  take  the  shape  of  a  lion  or  a  bear  or  a 
Philistine,  but  David  considered  that  it  was  only  so  much 
flesh  and  bone  and  muscle,  so  much  brag  or  roar,  tooth  or 
spear.  He  considered  the  Philistine  to  be  only  a  wild  ani- 
mal of  another  shape,  because  he  was  not  in  covenant  with 
God,  and  dared  to  put  himself  in  opposition  to  the  Most 
High.  My  brethren,  a  man  who  has  God  for  a  friend  is 
higher  than  an  angel,  but  a  man  who  is  God's  enemy  is  no 
better  than  a  beast  :  reckon  him  so  and  your  fears  of  him 
will  vanish.  Goliath  was  mighty,  but  so  was  the  lion  ;  he 
was  cunning  of  fence,  but  so  was  the  bear ;  the  case  was 
only  a  repetition  of  the  former  combat.  And  as  God  was 
not  with  the  lion,  nor  with  the  bear,  so  David  felt  that  God 
was  not  with  Goliath,  and  could  not  be,  for  he  was  the 
enemy  of  God's  Israel ;  and  as  God  had  been  with  him  when 
fighting  the  wild  beasts,  so  he  felt  that  God  was  with  him 
now.  It  looked  to  him  as  if  he  had  already  twice  gone 
through  a  rehearsal  of  all  this  when  he  was  in  the  wilderness 
alone,  and  therefore  he  could  the  more  easily  go  through  it 
now.  Perhaps  there  flashed  on  his  mind  the  case  of  Sam- 
son, who  learned  to  slay  the  Philistines  by  rending  a  lion 
when  he  was  alone  in  the  vineyard.  So  David  felt,  "  I  have 
killed  my  lion  like  Samson,  and  now  like  Samson  I  go  to 
light  this  Philistine,  or  a  thousand  like  him,  if  need  be,  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord  of  hosts." 

The  whole  argument  is  this,  in  the  one  case  by  such 
12* 


274  THE  LION-SLAYER  THE  GIANT  KILLER. 

tactics  we  have  been  successful  trusting  in  God,  and  there- 
fore in  a  similar  case  we  have  only  to  do  the  same,  and  we 
shall  realize  the  same  victory.  Brethren  and  sisters,  here  is  a 
fault  with  most  of  us,  that  when  we  look  back  upon  past  deliv- 
erances we  do  not  draw  this  parallel,  but  on  the  contrary  the 
temptation  haunts  us,  to  think  that  our  present  trial  is  clearly 
a  new  case.  For  instance,  David  might  have  said,  "  When  I 
slew  that  lion  I  was  younger  than  I  am  now,  and  I  had  more 
courage  and  vivacity,  but  those  shrewd  brushes  have  strained 
me  somewhat,  and  I  had  better  be  more  prudent."  Just  as 
you  and  I  say  sometimes,  "  Ah,  what  I  did  was  done  when  I 
was  a  young  man,  I  cannot  do  the  like  now.  That  trouble 
which  I  bore  so  patiently,  by  God's  grace,  was  in  other  times, 
but  this  affliction  has  come  upon  me  when  I  am  less  able  to 
endure  it,  for  I  have  not  the  elasticity  of  spirit  which  once  I 
had,  nor  the  vigor  I  formerly  possessed."  When  we  want  to 
escape  from  some  arduous  work,  we  do  it  by  trying  to  show 
that  we  are  not  under  the  same  obligations  as  in  former  days. 
We  know  in  our  conscience  that  if  we  did  great  things  when 
we  were  young  we  ought  to  do  greater  things  now  that  we 
are  older,  wiser,  more  experienced,  and  more  trained  in  war, 
but  we  try  to  argue  our  conscience  into  silence.  If  the  Lord 
helped  us  to  bear  with  patience,  or  to  labor  with  zeal,  after 
all  the  experience  we  have  had,  that  patience  and  zeal 
should  now  be  easier  to  us  than  before.  Alas,  we  do  not 
argue  so,  but  to  our  shame  we  excuse  ourselves  and  live  in- 
gloriously. 

I  know  a  man  who  to-day  says,  "Yes,  what  we  did  in 
years  gone  by  we  did  in  our  heroic  age,  but  we  are  not  so 
enthusiastic  now."  And  why  not  ?  We  are  so  apt  to  mag- 
nify our  former  selves,  and  think  of  our  early  deeds  as  of 
something  to  be  wondered  at,  but  not  to  be  attempted  now. 
Fools  that  we  are  !  They  were  little  enough  in  all  con- 
science, and  ought  to  be  outdone.  Oh,  dear  brethren,  this 
resting  on  our  oars  will  not  do,  we  are  drifting  down  with 


THE  LION-SLATER — THE  GIANT  KILLER.  275 

the  tide.  David  did  not  say,  "I  slew  a  lion  and  a  bear,  1 
have  had  my  turn  at  such  bouts,  let  somebody  else  go  and 
fight  that  Philistine  ; "  yet  we  have  heard  people  say,  "  When 
I  was  a  young  man  I  taught  in  the  Sunday-school,  I  used 
to  go  out  preaching  in  the  villages,  and  so  on."  Oh,  brother, 
and  why  not  do  it  now  ?  Methinks  you  ought  to  be  doing 
more  instead  of  less.  As  God  gives  you  more  knowledge, 
more  experience,  and  more  grace,  surely  your  labors  for 
him  ought  to  be  more  abundant  than  they  used  to  be  ;  but, 
alas,  you  do  not  look  on  it  as  a  parallel  case,  and  so  make 
excuses  for  yourself. 

Too  often  in  our  spiritual  work  we  fix  our  mind  upon  the 
differences  rather  than  upon  the  similarities.  For  instance, 
David  might  have  said,  I  would  not  mind  another  lion,  I 
can  manage  lions  ;  I  would  not  be  afraid  of  half-a-dozen 
more  bears,  I  am  used  to  bears  ;  but  this  Philistine  is  a  new 
sort  of  monster."  No,  David  saw  it  was  the  same  thing  after 
all,  a  little  difference  in  shape  but  the  same  brute  force,  and 
so  he  went  at  it  with  courage.  But  we  say,  "  Alas,  there  is 
a  great  difference  ;  our  present  trials  have  an  unusual  bitter- 
ness in  them."  "  I,"  cries  the  widow,  <*'  I  lost  my  husband, 
and  God  helloed  me,  and  my  son  has  been  a  stay  to  me ;  but 
now  he  too  is  gone,  and  I  have  no  other  son,  and  no  one  to 
fall  back  upon."  She  points  out  the  difference,  though  the 
trouble  is  virtually  the  same  ;  would  it  not  be  far  better  if 
she  pleaded  the  same  promise  and  believed  in  the  Lord  as 
she  did  before.  One  man  will  say,  66  Ah,  yes,  I  did  on  such 
an  occasion  run  all  risks  for  God,  but  you  see  there  is  a  dif- 
ference here."  I  know  there  is,  my  dear  brother,  there  is  a 
little  difference,  and  if  you  fix  your  eye  on  that  you  will  drill 
yourself  into  unbelief  ;  but  difference  or  no  difference,  where 
duty  calls  or  danger,  be  never  wanting  there ;  and  if  you 
should  be  called  to  bear  such  an  affliction  as  never  befell 
mortal  man  before,  yet  remember  God's  arm  is  not  shortened 
that  he  cannot  deliver  his  servants,  and  you  have  but  to  com^ 


276  THE  LION-SLAYER  THE  GIANT  KILLER. 

mit  yourself  to  him,  and  out  of  the  sevenfold  adversity  you 
shall  come  forth  a  sevenfold  conqueror. 

We  are  very  apt,  too,  to  look  back  upon  the  past  and  say, 
"  I  know  that  there  are  some  grand  things  the  Lord  did  for 
me,  and  my  venture  for  his  sake  turned  out  well,  but  I  do 
not  know  what  I  should  have  done  if  a  happy  circumstance 
had  not  occurred  to  help  me  just  in  the  nick  of  time."  We 
dare  to  attribute  our  deliverance  to  some  very  "happy  acci- 
dent." It  is  very  base  of  us  to  do  so,  for  it  was  the  Lord 
who  helped  us  from  first  to  last,  and  the  happy  occurrence 
was  a  mere  second  cause  ;  but  cannot  God  give  us  another 
"happy  accident"  if  necessary  in  this  present  trouble  ? 
Alas,  unbelief  says  "  There  was  a  circumstance  in  that  case 
which  really  did  alter  it,  and  I  cannot  expect  anything  like 
that  to  occur  now."  Oh,  how  wrong  this  is  of  us  !  How  we 
lose  the  force  of  that  blessed  reasoning  from  parallels  which 
might  have  supplied  us  with  courage  !  God  grant  that  we 
may  break  loose  from  this  net. 

Possibly  our  coward  heart  suggests  "  Perhaps  after  all 
this  deed  of  courage  may  not  be  quite  my  calling,  and  I 
had  better  not  attempt  it."  David  might  have  said,  "  I  am 
a  shepherd,  and  I  can  fight  with  lions,  but  I  was  never 
trained  to  war,  and  therefore  I  had  better  let  this  Philistine 
alone."  He  might  also  have  discovered  that  he  was  better 
adapted  for  protecting  sheep  than  for  becoming  the  champion 
of  a  nation.  We  must  guard  against  the  use  of  this  plausi- 
ble pretext,  for  pretext  it  is.  Brethren,  if  we  have  achieved 
success  by  the  power  of  God,  let  us  not  dote  upou  some 
supposed  adaptation,  but  stand  prepared  to  be  used  of  the 
Lord  in  any  other  way  which  he  may  choose.  Adaptation  is 
unknown  till  the  event  proves  it,  and  our  Lord  is  a  far 
better  judge  of  that  than  we  are.  If  you  see  before  you 
a  work  by  means  of  which  you  can  glorify  God  and  bless  the 
church,  do  not  hesitate,  but  enter  upon  it  in  reliance  upon 
your  God.    Do  not  stand  stuttering  and  stammering  and 


THE  LION-SLAY  EE — THE  GIANT  KILLER.  277 

talking  about  qualifications,  and  so  on,  but  what  your  hand 
findeth  to  do,  do  it  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  who  has 
bought  you  with  his  b\ood.  Prove  your  qualifications  by 
bringing  Goliath's  head  back  with  you,  and  no  further  ques- 
tions will  be  asked  by  any  one,  or  by  yourself. 

So,  too,  sometimes  we  frame  an  excuse  oat  of  the  opinions 
of  others.  We'  are  apt  to  feel  that  we  really  must  consider 
what  other  people  say.  Our  good  brother  Eliab  may  be 
a  little  crusty  in  temper,  but  still  he  is  a  man  of  a  good 
deal  of  prudence  and  experience,  and  he  tells  us  to  be  quiet 
and  let  these  things  alone,  and  perhaps  we  had  better  do  so. 
And  there  is  Saul ;  well,  he  is  a  man  of  great  acquaintance 
with  such  matters,  and  he  judges  that  we  had  better  decline 
the  task,  and  therefore  upon  the  whole  we  had  better  exhibit 
that  prudence  which  is  the  better  part  of  valor,  and  not 
rush  upon  certain  danger  and  probable  destruction.  This 
seeking  advice  and  following  cowardly  counsel  is  all  too 
common.  We  know  that  some  strenuous  effort  is  needed, 
and  it  is  in  our  power,  but  we  desire  ease,  and  therefore 
we  employ  other  men  to  weave  excuses  for  us.  It  would 
be  honester  to  say  outright  that  we  do  not  want  to  do  any 
more.  Were  we  more  full  of  love  to  Jesus,  this  unworthy 
device  would  be  scorned  by  us,  and  in  sacred  manliness 
of  mind  we  should  scorn  the  counsel  which  tendeth  to 
cowardice.  Others  cannot  bear  our  responsibility,  we  must 
each  one  give  an  account  of  himself  unto  God,  why,  then, 
yield  to  the  judgments  of  men  ?  Oh,  brethren,  fling  this 
folly  to  the  winds.  Obey  the  dictates  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
and  close  your  ears  to  the  advice  of  unbelief. 

Men  or  women,  consecrated  to  God,  if  the  Lord  impels 
you  to  do  anything  for  him  do  not  ask  me,  do  not  ask  my 
fellow  church  officers,  but  go  and  do  it.  If  God  has  helped 
you  in  the  past,  draw  a  parallel,  and  argue  from  it  that 
he  will  help  you  in  the  present.    Go,  and  the  Lord  go  with 


278  THE  LION-SLAYER  THE  GIANT  KILLER. 

you,  but  do  not  fall  a  prey  to  that  wicked  unbelief  which 
would  rob  you  of  your  strength. 
III.  The  last  thing  is  results. 

The  results  were,  first,  that  David  felt  he  would,  as  he 
did  before,  rely  upon  God  alone.  Come  ye  to  the  same  reso- 
lution, brothers  and  sisters.  God  alone  is  the  source  of 
power,  he  alone  can  render  real  aid  ;  let  us  then  rest  in  him, 
even  if  no  other  help  appear.  Is  not  the  Lord  alone  enough  ? 
That  arm  which  you  cannot  see  will  never  be  palsied,  its  sinews 
will  never  crack,  but  all  the  arms  of  mortals  upon  which  you 
so  much  love  to  lean  must  one  day  turn  to  dust  in  the  tomb  ; 
and  while  they  live  they  are  but  weakness  itself.  Trust  ye 
in  the  Lord  forever,  for  in  the  Lord  Jjehovah  there  is  ever- 
lasting strength.  David  had  found  wisdom's  self  when  he 
said,  "  My  soul  wait  thou  only  upon  God,  for  my  expecta- 
tion is  from  him." 

David  resolved  again  to  run  all  risks  once  more,  as  he  had 
before.  As  he  had  ventured  himself  against  the  lion  so  he 
would  put  his  life  in  his  hand  aud  engage  the  Philistine. 
Come  wounds  and  maiming,  come  piercing  spear  or  cutting 
sword,  come  death  itself  amid  the  taunts  and  exultations  of 
his  giant  foe,  he  would  still  dare  everything  for  Israel's  sake 
and  for  God's  sake.  Soldiers  of  the  cross,  if  you  feel  that 
you  can  do  this,  be  not  slow  to  put  it  in  practice,  throw 
yourselves  wholly  into  the  Lord's  service,  consecrate  your- 
selves, your  substance,  and  all  to  the  grand  end  of  glorifying 
Christ,  fighting  against  error,  and  plucking  souls  from  de- 
struction. 

David's  next  step  was  to  put  himself  into  the  same  condi- 
tion as  on  former  occasions,  by  divesting  himself  of  every- 
thing that  hampered  him.  He  had  fought  the  lion  with 
nature's  weapons,  and  so  would  he  meet  the  Philistine.  Off 
went  that  glittering  royal  helmet,  which  no  doubt  made  his 
head  ache  with  its  weight.  Off  went  the  cumbersome  armor, 
in  which  he  found  it  very  hard  to  move.    In  such  a  metallic 


THE  LION-SLAYER — THE  GIANT  KILLER.  279 

prison  he  did  not  feel  like  David  a  bit,  and  therefore  he  put 
all  aside,  and  wore  only  his  shepherd's  frock.  As  for  that 
magnificent  sword  which  he  had  just  strapped  by  his  side, 
he  felt  that  it  would  be  more  ornament  than  use,  and  so 
he  laid  it  aside  with  the  rest  of  the  trappings,  and  put  on 
his  wallet,  and  took  nothing  with  him  but  his  sling  and 
stone.  This  was  the  old  style,  and  he  did  well  to  keep  to  it, 
for  the  Lord  saveth  not  with  sword  and  spear.  We  are 
all  too  apt  to  get  into  fine  harness  and  tie  ourselves  np  with 
rules  and  methods.  The  art  of  getting  rid  of  all  hamper  is  a 
noble  one,  but  few  have  learned  it.  Look  at  our  churches, 
look  at  the  church  at  large,  is  there  not  enough  red  tape 
about  to  strangle  a  nation  ?  Have  we  not  committees 
enough  to  sink  a  ship  with  their  weight  ?  As  for  patrons, 
presidents,  vice-presidents,  and  secretaries,  had  not  Christi- 
anity been  divine  it  could  not  have  lived  under  the  load 
of  these  personages  who  sit  on  her  bosom.  The  roundabouts 
are  worrying  straightforward  action  out  of  the  world.  We 
are  organized  -into  strait  waistcoats.  The  vessel  of  the 
church  has  such  an  awful  lot  of  tophamper  that  I  wonder 
how  she  can  be  navigated  at  all ;  and  if  a  tempest  were 
to  come  on  she  would  have  to  cut  herself  free  from  nearly  all 
of  it.  When  shall  we  get  at  the  work  ?  If  there  should 
ever  come  a  day  when  brethren  will  go  forth  preaching  the 
gospel,  simply  resting  in  faith  upon  the  Lord  alone,  I  for 
one  expect  to  see  grand  results  ;  but  at  present  Saul's  armor 
is  everywhere.  When  we  get  rid  of  formality  in  preaching 
we  shall  see  great  results  ;  but  the  churches  are  locked  up 
in  irons  which  they  call  armor.  Why,  dear  me,  if  we  are 
to  have  a  special  service,  one  brother  must  have  it  conducted 
on  the  Moody  method,  and  another.can  only  have  Sankey 
hymns.  Who,  then,  are  we  that  we  must  follow  others  ? 
Do  not  talk  to  us  about  innovations,  and  all  that ;  away 
with  your  rubbish  !  Let  us  serve  God  with  all  our  hearts, 
and  preach  Jesus  Christ  to  sinners  with  our  whole  souls,  and 


280  THE  LION-SLAYER  THE  GIANT  KILLER. 

the  mode  is  of  no  consequence.  To  preach  down  priestcraft 
and  error,  and  do  it  in  the  simplest  possible  manner,  by 
preaching  up  Christ,  is  the  way  of  wisdom.  We  must 
preach,  not  after  the  manner  of  doctors  of  divinity,  but 
after  the  manner  of  those  unlearned  and  ignorant  men  in 
the  olden  time  who  had  been  with  Jesus,  and  learned  of 
him.  Brethren,  some  of  you  have  too  much  armor  on. 
Put  it  off  :  be  simple,  be  natural,  be  artless,  be  plain-spoken, 
be  trustful  in  the  living  God,  and  you  will  succeed.  Less  of 
the  artificer's  brass,  and  more  of  heaven-anointed  manhood  is 
wanted  :  more  sanctified  naturalness,  and  less  of  studied  arti- 
ficialness.    0  Lord,  send  us  this,  for  Christ's  sake.  Amen. 

The  ultimate  result  was,  that  the  young  champion  came 
back  with  Goliath's  head  in  his  hand,  and  equally  sure 
triumphs  await  every  one  of  you  if  you  rely  on  the  Lord, 
and  act  in  simple  earnestness.  If  for  Christ,  my  sister,  you 
will  go  forward  in  his  work,  resting  upon  him,  you  shall  see 
souls  converted  by  your  instrumentality.  If,  my  brother, 
you  will  but  venture  everything  for  Christ's  glory,  and 
depend  alone  on  him,  what  men  call  fanaticism  shall  be 
considered  by  God  to  be  only  sacred  consecration,  and  he 
will  send  you  the  reward  which  he  always  gives  to  a  full, 
thorough,  simple,  unselfish  faith  in  himself. 

If  the  result  of  my  preaching  this  sermon  should  be  to 
stir  up  half  a  dozen  workers  to  some  venturesome  zeal  for 
God,  I  shall  greatly  rejoice.  I  remember  when  I  commenced 
this  work  in  London,  God  being  with  me,  I  said  if  he  would 
only  give  me  half  a  dozen  good  men  and  women  a  work 
would  be  done,  but  that  if  I  had  half  a  dozen  thousand 
sleepy  people  nothing  would  be  accomplished.  At  this 
time  I  am  always  afraid  of  our  falling  into  a  lethargic  condi- 
tion. This  church  numbers  nearly  five  thousand  members, 
but  if  you  are  only  five  thousand  cowards  the  battle  will 
bring  no  glory  to  God.  If  we  have  one  David  among  us, 
that  one  hero  will  do  wonders ;  but  think  what  an  army 


THE  LION-SLAYER  THE  GIANT  KILLER.  281 

would  be  if  all  the  soldiers  were  Davids — it  would  oe  an  ill 
case  with  the  Philistines  then.  Oh  that  we  were  all  Davids, 
that  the  weakest  among  us  were  as  David,  and  David  him- 
self were  better  than  he  is,  and  became  like  an  angel  of  the 
Lord  !  God's  Holy  Spirit  is  equal  to  the  doing  of  this,  and 
why  should  he  not  do  it  ?  Let  us  call  to  him  for  help,  and 
that  help  will  come. 

I  must  just  say  this  word  to  some  here  present  who 
lament  that  there  is  nothing  in  this  sermon  for  them.  Un- 
converted persons,  you  who  cannot  draw  any  argument  from 
your  past  experience,  for  you  have  none  of  a  right  kind  ;  but 
you  may  draw  comfort,  and  I  pray  you  do  so,  from  another 
view  of  this  story.  Jesus  Christ,  the  true  David,  has  plucked 
some  of  us  -like  lambs  from  between  the  jaws  of  the  devil. 
Many  of  us  were  carried  captive  by  sin  ;  transgression  had  so 
encumbered  us  about  that  we  were  unable  to  escape,  but  our 
great  Lord  delivered  us.  Sinner,  why  can  he  not  deliver 
you  ?  If  yon  cannot  fight  the  lion  of  the  pit,  he  can.  Do 
you  ask  me,  What  are  you  to  do  ?  Well,  call  for  his  help  as 
loudly  as  you  can.  If  you  are  like  a  lamb,  bleat  to  him,  and 
the  bleatings  of  the  lamb  will  attract  the  shepherd's  ear.  Cry 
mightily  unto  the  Lord  for  salvation,  and  trust  alone  in  the 
Lord  Jesus.  He  will  save  you.  If  you  were  between  the 
jaws  of  hell,  yet,  if  you  believe  in  him,  he  would  surely 
pluck  you  out  of  destruction.  God  grant  that  you  may  find 
it  so,  for  Christ's  sake.  Amen. 


SERMON  XV. 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 

Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 
ington. 

"  I  am  the  God  of  Bethel." — Genesis  xxxi.  13. 

Jacob  had  been  sent  away  to  Padan-aram,  and  he  might, 
perhaps,  have  stopped  there  if  things  had  been  quite  as  he 
wished.  As  it  was,  he  stayed  there  quite  long  enough.  He 
seemed  almost  to  forget  his  father's  house  in  the  cares  that 
his  wives  and  children  and  the  anxious  oversight  of  his  con- 
stantly increasing  flocks  involved  ;  but  God  did  not  mean 
him  to  remain  at  Padan-aram.  He  was  to  lead  the  separated 
life  in  Canaan,  and  therefore  things  grew  very  uncomfortable 
with  Laban.  He  was  not  a  nice  man  to  live  with  at  any 
time,  but  he  began  to  show  his  crotchets,  and  his  heart- 
burnings, and  a  good  deal  of  that  scheming  spirit  of  which 
there  was  a  little  in  Jacob.  It  came  to  him  from  his  mother, 
who  was  Laban's  true  sister,  and  had  her  share  of  the  family 
failing.  So  there  were  endless  bickerings,  and  bargainings,  and 
disputes,  and  overreachings  the  one  of  the  other,  till  at  last, 
as  God  would  have  it,  Jacob  could  bear  it  no  longer,  and  he 
resolved  to  take  leave  of  that  land,  and  return  to  the  land  of 
his  kindred.  An  angel  appeared  to  him  then  to  comfort  him 
in  going  back  to  his  father's  house  ;  and  the  angel  spake  in  the 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


283 


name  of  the  Lord  and  said,  "  I  am  the  God  of  Bethel,"  which 
must  have  at  once  suggested  to  Jacob  that  the  Lord  had  not 
changed,  more  especially  in  regard  to  him.  The  occurrence 
at  Bethel  was  the  first  special  occasion,  probably,  upon  which 
he  had  known  the  Lord,  and  though  many  years  had  passed-, 
God  comes  to  him  as  the  same  God  as  he  was  before.  ee*L 
am  the  God  of  Bethel."  You  remember,  some  of  you,  per- 
haps, the  first  time  when  pardoning  love  was  revealed  to  you 
— when  you  were  brought  to  see  the  love  of  God  in  the  great 
atoning  sacrifice  of  Jesus  Christ.  Well,  to-night,  the  Lord 
says  to  you,  66 1  am  the  same  God  as  you  have  ever  found  me. 
I  have  not  changed.  I  change  not ;  therefore  ye  sons  of 
Jacob  are  not  consumed,  even  as  your  father  Jacob  was  not 
consumed  ;  for  I  was  even  to  him  the  selfsame  God."  Brethren, 
what  a  mercy  it  is  that  we  have  an  immutable  God.  Every- 
thing else  changes.  Yon  moou,  which  but  a  little  while  ago 
was  full,  you  see  now  young  and  new  again,  and  soon  she 
will  fill  her  horns.  Everything  beneath  her  beams  changes 
like  herself.  We  are  never  at  one  stage,  and  our  circum- 
stances are  perpetually  varying.  But  thou,  0  God,  art  the 
same,  and  of  thy  years  there  is  no  ejid.  Thy  creatures  are  a 
sea,  but  thou,  art  the  terra  firma,  and  when  our  soul  comes 
to  rest  on  thee,  thou  Eock  of  Ages,  then  we  know  what 
stability  means,  and,  for  the  first  time,  we  enjoy  true  rest. 
Trust  ye  in  the  Lord  forever,  and  rest  ye  in  the  Lord  alone, 
for  he  changes  not. 

"  I  am  the  God  or  Bethel."  Does  not  that  mean,  first, 
that  our  God  is  the  God  of  our  early  mercies  ?  As  we  have 
already  said,  Bethel  was  to  Jacob  the  place  of  early  mercy. 
Let  us  look  back  upon  our  early  mercies.  Did  they  not  come  to 
us,  as  they  did  to  him,  unsought  and  unexpected,  and  when, 
perhaps  we  were  unprepared  for  them  ?  I  do  not  know 
what  were  Jacob's  feelings  when  he  lay  down  with  a  stone 
for  his  pillow,  but  I  feel  very  sure  that  he  never  reckoned 
that  the  place  would  be  the  house  of  God  to  him.    His  excla- 


284 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


mation  showed  this  when  he  said,  "  Surely,  God  is  in  this 
place,  and  I  knew  it  not  ! "  It  was  the  last  thing  on  his 
mind  that,  amidst  those  stones,  the  Lord  would  set  up  a 
ladder  for  him,  and  would  speak  from  the  top  of  it  to  his 
soul.  So,  dear  friends,  with  some  of  us,  when  God  appeared 
to  us,  it  was  in  a  very  unexpected  manner.  Perhaps* we 
were  not  looking  for  him,  but  in  us  was  fulfilled  that  mem- 
orable word,  "  I  am  found  of  them  that  sought  me  not." 
We,  like  Jacob,  were  glad  to  meet  him,  but  we  had  not 
expected  that  he  would  come,  or  come  in  so  divine  a  man- 
ner, with  such  fulness  of  covenant  manifestation,  and  such 
richness  of  grace.  But  he  took  our  soul  or  ever  we  were 
aware,  and  carried  us  right  away  from  ourselves.  We,  per- 
haps, like  Jacob,  were  sleeping.  God  was  awake.  This  was 
the  mercy.  And  he  came  to  us  while  yet  our  heart  slept  and 
our  mind  had  not  felt  awakened  towards  himself.  We  seemed 
slumbering  with  regard  to  divine  things,  but  as  a  dream  in 
the  visions  of  the  night,  so  God  came  to  us.  He  found  us 
sleeping,  but  nevertheless  he  manifested  himself  to  us  as  he 
doth  not  unto  the  world.  Do  you  remember  all  that  ? 
Then  the  God  you  have  to  look  to  is  the  God  of  that  unex- 
pected grace.  Do  you  want  grace  to-night  ?  Why  should 
you  not  have  it  ?  Are  you  unfit  for  it  ?  Do  you  feel  more 
and  more  how  undeserving  you  are  of  it  ?  Yet  it  came  to 
you  before  when  you  were  in  just  such  a  state.  Why' 
should  not  it  come  again  ?  Sitting  in  this  house  of  prayer, 
why  should  not  we  again  be  startled,  and  be  made  to  say, 
"  Surely  God  is  in  this  place,  and  I  knew  it  not.  I  did  not 
think  when  I  came  within  these  walls  that  here  he  would  in 
such  a  special  manner  reveal  himself  to  me  ;  but  now  I  shall 
always  think  of  the  seat  wherein  I  sat,  and  said,  '  How 
dreadful  is  this  place  !  It  is  none  other  than  the  house  of 
God,  and  the  gate  of  heaven.'"  The  God  of  unexpected 
manifestations  in  your  early  days  is  the  same  God  still. 

Perhaps,  dear  friends,  some  of  you  can  look  back  upon 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


285 


those  early  manifestations  as  having  taken  place  when  you 
were  in  a  very  sad  and  lonely  condition.  Jacob  was  alone. 
He  ivas  a  man  that  loved  society.  There  are  many  signs  of 
that.  Perhaps,  for  the  first  time  iu  his  life,  he  was  then  out 
of  the  shelter  of  his  tent,  and  away  from  the  familiar  voices 
of  his  beloved  father  and  mother.  He  had  always  been  his 
mother's  son.  Something  about  him  had  always  attracted 
her.  But  now  no  one  was  within  call.  He  might,  perhaps, 
have  heard  the  roar  of  the  wild  beasts,  but  no  familiar  voice 
of  a  friend  was  anywhere  near.  It  was  a  very  lonely  night  to 
him.  Some  of  us  recollect  the  first  night  we  were  away  from 
home — how  dreary  we  felt  as  children.  The  same  kind  of 
homesickness  will  come  over  men  and  women  when  they  say 
to  themselves,  "Now,  at  last,  I  have  got  out  of  the  range 
wherein  I  have  been  accustomed  to  go,  and  I  have  got  away 
from  the  dear  familiar  faces  that  made  life  so  happy  to  me." 
Yes,  but  it  was  just  then  that  God  appeared  to  him,  and 
have  not  you  found  it  so  ?  Amidst  darkest  shades  Christ 
appears  to  you.  Have  not  you  had  times  of  real  desolation 
of  spirit,  from  one  cause  or  another,  in  which  the  Lord  has 
seemed  more  sweet  to  you  than  ever  he  was  before  ?  When 
all  created  streams  have  run  dry,  the  everlasting  fount  has 
bubbled  up  with  more  sweet  and  cooling  streams  than  it  ever 
did  at  any  other  time.  Well ;  recollect  all  those  scenes,  and 
the  accompanying  circumstances  which  made  them  seem  so 
cheering,  and  then  say,  "  This  God,  even  the  God  of  Bethel, 
is  still  my  God  ;  and  if  I  am  at  present  in  trouble,  if  I  am 
as  lonely  now  as  I  was  then,  if  I  am  brought  so  low  that 
literally  I  have  nothing  but  a  doorstep  for  my  pillow  ;  if  I 
should  lose  bouse,  and  home,  and  friends,  and  be  left  like  an 
orphan  amidst  the  wild  winds,  with  none  to  shelter  me,  yet, 
O  God  of  Bethel,  thou  who  wast  the  cover  of  my  head  and 
the  protector  of  my  spirit,  wilt  still  be  with  me,  the  God  of 
those  early  visitations  in  times  of  my  dark  distress."  Thus 
the  God  of  Bethel  by  that  visit  cheered  Jacob's  heart.    I  can 


286 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


hardly  suppose  that  there  was  an  individual  more  unhappily 
circumstanced  that  night  than  Jacob  was;  but  I  question 
whether  ever  any  individual  in  tent  or  palace  woke  up  so 
happy  in  the  morning  as  the  patriarch  did.  Oh,  it  was  a 
night  that  might  make  us  wish  to  lie  beneath  the  selfsame 
dews,  and  look  up  to  the  selfsame  heavens,  if  we  might  see 
the  selfsame  vision.  We  would  put  from  us  the  downy  pil- 
low, the  luxurious  curtains,  and  the  comfortable  well-fur- 
nished chambers,  and  say,  "  Give  us,  oh,  give  us  Lord,  if  so 
it  might  please  thee,  that  same  desert  place,  if  we  might  but 
see  thyself,  and  hear  thy  voice,  as  Jacob  did  of  old."  Oh, 
how  strong  he  was  to  pursue  his  journey  after  he  poured 
that  oil  on  the  top  of  the  stone.  I  warrant  you  he  went 
many  an  extra  mile  that  day  in  the  strength  of  that  night's 
sleep.  Now  he  could  refrain  from  pining  after  his  kindred 
and  his  father's  house,  and  keep  his  face  constantly  towards 
Bethuel's  home,  whither  his  father  had  sent  him,  for  the  God 
of  his  fathers  had  said,  "  I  am  with  thee  in  all  places  whither 
thou  goest,  and  I  will  bring  thee  back  again  unto  this  place." 
Now,  do  you  not  recollect  how  you  were  strengthened  and 
comforted  in  like  manner  ?    Have  not  you  sung 

.  "  Midst  darkest  shades,  if  he  appear, 
My  dawning  is  begun. 
He  is  my  soul's  bright  morning  star, 
And  he  my  rising  sun."  * 

Have  not  you  found  him  all  that  you  wanted,  and  more  than 
you  expected  ?  Has  not  grace  for  grace  been  given,  and 
strength  equal  to  your  day,  because  the  Lord  appeared  of  old 
unto  you  ?  Brethren,  the  presence  of  God  puts  the  iron 
shoes  on  the  feet  of  the  weary  traveller  ;  nay,  makes  his 
feet  like  hinds'  feet,  so  that  he  stands  on  high  places ;  and 
while  he  pours  out  the  oil  of  gratitude  God  pours  upon  him 
the  oil  of  joy,  and  puts  away  his  mourning.  So  the  pilgrim 
foots  it  merrily  over  the  rough  way  until  he  gets  to  the  place 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


287 


whither  he  is  bidden  to  go.  The  God  of  Bethel,  then,  is 
the  God  of  early  visits  unexpected,  given  when  much  needed, 
and  yielding  just  what  was  needed  of  peace  to  the  soul. 

"I  am  the  God  of  Bethel."  This  title  conveys  a  fresh 
lesson.  Does  it  not  mean,  the  God  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  9 
What  is  "Bethel"  but  "the  house  of  God."  Brethren,  I 
hear  that  term  constantly  applied  to  your  buildings  that  are 
made  with  stone  or  iron,  with  brick  and  mortar,  or  with  lath 
and  plaster,  or  whatever  it  may  be.  Every  little  conventicle 
that  is  put  up,  and  every  huge  cathedral  that  is  reared,  be  it 
a  building  with  lowly  porch  or  lofty  spire,  is  called  the  house 
of  God.  Well,  did  you  never  read  where  it  is  said,  "  God 
that  made  heaven  and  earth  dwelleth  not  in  temples  made 
with  hands,  that  is  to  say,  of  this  building"  ?  Have  you 
never  read  that  magnificent  sentence  of  Solomon  at  the  con- 
secration of  the  temple,  "  Behold,  heaven  and  the  heaven 
of  heavens  cannot  contain  thee;  how  much  less  this  house 
which  I  have  built "  ?  Think  ye  then  that  he  will  dwell  in 
any  of  these  classic  buildings,  be  they  of  Greek,  or  Gothic, 
of  Norman  or  mediaeval  architecture  ?  Oh,  sirs,  God  is 
great  and  greatly  to  be  praised,  as  much  outside  as  inside  of 
your  petty  structures.  He  is  everywhere  ;  he  filleth  all 
things  :  and  God's  house  is  not  a  place  that  you  can  build 
for  him,  artistic  as  your  tastes  may  be.  "  Your  memorial 
windows  are  not  his  remembrancers.  They  may  charm  you, 
they  cannot  cheat  him.  But  there  is  a  place  where  God 
ever  dwells.  What  habitation  hath  he  prepared  for  him- 
self, and  what  tabernacle  hath  he  builded  ?  There  is  one  abode 
mysteriously  fashioned.  We  speak  of  its  strange  conception 
and  its*  matchless  purity  of  architecture.  It  was  the  body 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  "  A  body  hast  thou  prepared 
me."  And  the  house  of  God,  the  true  Bethel,  the  person  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  for  "  in  him  dwelleth  all  the  fulness 
-of  the  Godhead  bodily."  For  "  the  word  was  made  flesh 
and  tabernacled  among  us,  and  we  beheld  his  glory,  the 


288 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


glory  as  of  the  Only-begotten  of  the  Father,  full  of  grace  and 
truth."  The  house  of  God  is  first  the  person  of  Christ,  and 
then  the  church  of  God,  which  is  the  body  of  Christ  mys- 
tically. This  is  the  house  and  the  household  of  God,  even 
the  church  of  the  living  God. 

Not  now  to  insist  upon  the  meaning  of  that  word  Bethel, 
or  on  him  who  came  to  Bethlehem,  and  there  was  born  the 
very  house  of  the  divine  indwelling,  I  will  rather  muse 
upon  that  vision  which  made  God,  especially  to  Jacob  that 
night,  the  God  of  the  Saviour.  He  saw  the  ladder,  the 
foot  whereof  was  on  earth,  and  the  top  whereof  reached  to 
heaven — a  ladder  which  can  never  be  explained  in  any  other 
way  than  as  a  figure  of  that  same  Christ  who  came  down 
from  heaven,  who  also  is  in  heaven,  by  whom  we  must 
ascend  to  heaven,  and  through  whom  heaven's  blessings 
come  down  to  us. 

The  God  of  Bethel  is  a  God  who  does  concern  him- 
self with  the  things  of  earth,  not  a  God  who  shuts  himself 
up  in  heaven,  but  a  God  who  hath  a  ladder  fixed  between 
heaven  and  earth.  The  God  of  most  men — the  God  of  the 
ud regenerate — is  an  inanimate  God,  or,  if  alive  and  able  to 
see,  is  an  unfeeling  God,  careless  about  them  and  their  per- 
sonal interests.  "  Oh,  it  is  preposterous,"  say  they,  "  to 
think  that  he  takes  notice  of  our  sorrows  and  troubles — and 
still  more  absurd  to  suppose  that  he  hears  prayer,  or  that  he 
ever  interferes  in  answer  to  the  voice  of  supplication,  to  grant 
a  poor  man  his  requests.  It  cannot  be."  That  is  their  God, 
you  see.  That  is  the  God  of  the  heathen — a  dead,  blind, 
dumb  God.  I  do  not  wonder  that  they  do  not  pray  to  him. 
They  could  not  expect  an  answer.  But  the  God  of  grace  is 
one  who  has  opened  a  communication  between  heaven  and 
earth,  who  notices  the  cries  of  his  children,  puts  their  tears 
into  his  bottle,  sympathizes  with  their  sorrows,  looks  down 
on  them  with  an  eye  of  pity  and  a  father's  love,  has  com- 
munion with  them,  and  permits  them  to  have  communion 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


289 


with  him,  and  all  that  through  the  "blessed  person  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  See  where  the  foot  of  this  ladder  rests 
on  earth,  for  he  lies  in  the  manger  at  Bethlehem  as  a  babe. 
He  lives  on  earth  the  life  of  a  common  laborer,  wearing  the 
smock-frock  of  toil.  He  dies  upon  the  accursed  tree  a  felon's 
death,  that  he  may  be  like  man  even  in  bearing  the  image  of 
death  upon  his  face.  This  is  where  the  ladder  stands,  in  the 
miry  clay  of  manhood.  But  see  where  it  rises,  for  he  is 
equal  with  God,  co-equal,  equal  in  power,  and  wisdom,  and 
holiness,  and  every  glorious  attribute,  very  God  of  very  God, 
before  whom  angels  bow.  The  bottom  of  the  ladder  comes 
down  to  man,  but  the  top  of  it  reaches  right  up  to  God,  in 
all  the  glory  of  the  mysterious  Godhead.  Thus,  you  see, 
there  is  a  link  between  the  two.  And  the  God  we  worship 
does  hold  fellowship  with  us,  and  remains  no  silent  spectator 
of  our  griefs.  Up  that  ladder  angels  ascend,  and  our  pray- 
ers ascend,  our  praises,  our  tears,  our  sighs.  Jesus  teaches 
them  the  way.  And  there  is  a  traffic  downwards,  too,  for 
blessings  come  down  both  rich  and  rare,  by  the  way  of  the 
Mediator.  We  shall  never  be  able  to  count  them.  How 
great  is  the  sum  of  them  !  What  traffic  there  is  on  the 
rungs  of  that  ladder  !  Upwards,  0  my  soul,  send  thy  mes- 
sengers a  thousand, times  a  day  ;  but  downwards  God's  mes- 
sengers are  continually  coming — mercies,  favors,  altogether 
as  innumerable  as  the  sands  that  are  upon  the  sea-shore, 
and  all  coming  down  that  ladder.  There  is  a  way  of  judg- 
ment which  the  swift- winged  angel  takes  without  a  ladder, 
but  the  way  of  mercy  always  needs  the  staircase  of  light. 
No  mercy  or  favor  comes  to  us,  save  through  Jesus  Christ 
our  Lord,  by  whom  we  deal  with  God  and  God  deals  with  us. 

That  way  in  Jacob's  dream,  you  will  notice,  was  emi- 
nently a  way  commended  to  him,  for  the  foot  of  the  ladder 
was  where  Jacob  lay,  and  the  top  of  it  was  where  God  was. 
Have  we  realized  this  ?  Do  you  know  God,  my  brothers  and 
sisters,  as  one  with  whom  you  can  speak — with  whom  you 
13 


290 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


can  speak  yourself — as  real  to  you  as  your  husband,  your 
father,  your  friend  ?  Are  you  in  the  habit  of  keeping  up 
constant  communication  with  your  God  ?  If  you  are,  you 
know  the  God  of  Bethel.  If  you  are  not,  I  pray  that  the 
God  of  Bethel  may  reveal  himself  to  you.  You  could  not 
have  had  fellowship  with  God  if  there  had  been  no  Christ. 
Without  the  ladder  how  could  there  be  a  connection  between 
Jacob  and  God  ?  But  with  the  ladder,  even  Jesus  Christ, 
the  way  is  open,  open  always,  open  now.  Oh,  it  has  been 
open  many  and  many  a  time.  We  have  resorted  to  it,  and 
never  found  it  closed.  We  have  cried  to  him  in  deep  dis- 
tress, but  the  way  upwards  has  been  open  when  all  sur- 
rounding ways  were  shut.  We  have  wanted  mercy,  and 
mercy  has  come  when  we  thought  that  mercy  could  not 
possibly  reach  us.  Yet  it  came  downwards  when  it  could 
not  come  in  any  other  way.  And  it  is  just  the  same  to- 
night. Oh,  use  the  ladder  :  use  it  well.  Dart  thy  desires 
upwards  now.  They  shall  tread  those  rounds.  Thy  thanks, 
thy  petitions,  thy  confessions — send  them  up.  They  are  wel- 
come. The  ladder  is  made  on  purpose  for  the  traffic.  Do 
thou  use  it  now,  and  as  thou  usest  it  bless  the  God  of  Bethel 
with  all  thy  heart.  , 

Still  further  let  us  remember  that  this  God  of  Bethel  is 
the  God  of  angels.  We  do  not  often  say  much  about  those 
mysterious  beings,  for  it  is  but  little  that  we  know  of  them. 
This,  however,  we  know — that  angels  are  set  by  God  to  be 
the  watchers  over  his  people.  Jacob  was  asleep,  but  the 
angels  were  wide  awake.  They  were  going  up  and  down  that 
ladder  while  Jacob  was  lying  there,  steeped  in  slumber.  So 
when  you  and  I  are  sleeping,  when  the  blessed  God  has  put 
his  fingers  on  our  eyelids,  and  said,  "  Lie  still,  my  child,  and 
be  refreshed,"  there  may  be  no  policeman  at  the  door,  no 
body-guard  to  prevent  intrusion,  but  there  are  angels  ever 
watching  over  us.  We  shall  not  come  to  harm  if  we  put  our 
trust  in  God.    "  I  will  lay  me  down  to  sleep,  for  thou 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


291 


makest  me  to  dwell  in  safety."  These  angels  were  also 
messengers.  "Are  they  not  all  ministering  spirits?"  and 
are  they  not  sent  with  messages  from  God  ?  To  Jacob  they 
had  their  errand.  On  more  than  one  occasion  angels  bore 
him  messages  from  the  Most  High.  How  far  or  how  oft 
they  bring  us  messages  now  I  cannot  tell.  Sometimes 
thoughts  drop  into  the  soul  that  do  not  reach  us  in  the 
regular  connection  of  our  thoughts.  We  scarcely  know  how 
to  account  for  them.  It  may  be  they  are  due  to  the  imme- 
diate action  of  the  blessed  Spirit,  but  they  may,  for  aught 
we  know,  be  brought  by  some  other  spirit,  pure  and  heav- 
enly, sent  to  suggest  those  thoughts  to  our  soul.  "We  cannot 
tell.  The  angels  are  watchers  certainly,  and  they  are  mes- 
sengers without  a  doubt.  Moreover,  they  are  our  protectors. 
God  employs  them  to  bear  us  up  in  their  hands,  lest  at  any 
time  we  dash  our  foot  against  a  stone.  We  do  not  see  them, 
but  unseen  agencies  are  probably  the  strongest  agencies  in' 
the  world.  We  know  it  is  so  in  physics.  Such  agencies  as 
electricity,  which  we  cannot  perceive,  nevertheless,  unques- 
tionably powerful,  and,  when  put  forth  in  their  strength, 
quite  beyond  the  control  of  man.  No  doubt  myriads  of 
spiritual  creatures  walk  this  earth,  both  when  we  sleep  and 
when  we  wake.  How  much  of  good  they  do  us  it  is  impossi- 
ble for  us  to  tell.  But  this  we  do  know — they  are  "sent 
forth  to  minister  to  them  that  are  heirs  of  salvation,"  and 
they  are  in  God's  hands  the  means,  oftentimes,  of  warding 
off  from  us  a  thousand  ills  which  we  know  not  of,  and  about 
which,  therefore,  we  cannot  thank  God  that  we  are  kept 
from  them,  except  we  do  so  by  thanking  him,  as  I  think  we 
ought  to  do  more  often,  for  those  unknown  mercies  which 
are  none  the  less  precious  because  we  have  not  the  sense 
to  be  able  to  perceive  them.  Perhaps  in  mid-air  at  this 
moment  there  may  be  battles  between  the  bright  spirits 
of  God  and  the  spirits  of  evil.  Perhaps  full  often  when 
Satan  might  tempt,  there   come   against  him  a  mighty 


292 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


squadron  of  cherubim  and  seraphim  to  drive  him  back, 
and  those  strange  battles  of  which  Milton  sings  in  his  won- 
drous epic  may  not  be  all  a  dream.  We  cannot  tell.  We 
know  they  do  dispute ;  the  good  angels  do  dispute  with  the 
wicked,  and  contend.  We  know  that  they  are  mighty  in 
battle,  and  strong  on  behalf  of  God's  people.  Anyhow,  this 
is  true ;  Omnipotence  has  many  servants,  and  some  of  those 
least  seen  are  the  strongest  it  employs.  If  there  be  an  angel 
anywhere,  my  friend,  he  is  thy  friend  if  thou  be  God's  friend. 
If  there  be  in  heaven  or  earth  any  intelligence  flying  swiftly 
at  this  moment,  he  flies  upon  no  errand  of  harm  to  thee. 
Be  thou  full  sure  of  that.  Occasionally  I  meet  with  very 
foolish  people,  who  believe  in  things  which  are  unrevealed, 
in  things  superstitious,  in  glamors  strange,  and  baseless 
fancies.  Ofttimes  they  are  not  a  little  frightened  about  I 
scarcely  know  what — about  enchantments,  divinations,  or 
sorceries.  There  is  such  a  credulity  that  still  survives  among 
the  extremely  ignorant.  But  whenever  I  have  heard  such 
observations  I  have  always  thought  of  that  wonderful  text  in 
the  Book  of  Numbers,  "  Surely  there  is  no  enchantment 
against  Jacob,  neither  is  there  any  divination  against  Israel." 
There  can  be  no  spiritual  powers  which  you  or  I  have  any 
need  to  fear.  I  remember  hearing  a  good  brother  speak 
about  courage  against  the  devil,  and  in  reference  to  spiritual 
power  he  said  that  he  believed  that  a  man  of  God,  when  he 
had  faith,  could  kick  his  way  through  a  street  full  of  devils 
from  one  end  to  the  other.  I  admired  his  simile.  It  was 
worthy  of  Martin  Luther,  for  it  was  the  kind  of  thing  that 
Martin  Luther  would  have  said.  Oh,  if  the  air  were  as  full 
of  devils  as  it  is  of  fogs,  a  man  that  has  God  within  him 
might  laugh  them  all  to  scorn.  Who  can  hurt  the  man 
whom  God  protects  ?  Unseen  powers  and  terrible  they  may 
be,  but  they  cannot  injure  us,  for  there  are  other  unseen 
powers  more  terrible  still,  the  hosts  of  that  Lord  who  is 
mighty  in  battle,  and  all  these  are  sworn  to  protect  the 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


293 


children  of  God.  "  Thou  hast  given  commandment  to  save 
me/'  says  David  ;  and  if  God  has  charged  his  angels  to  pro- 
tect and  save  his  people  from  all  harm,  depend  upon  it  they 
are  secure. 

Moreover,  the  God  of  Bethel  is  the  God  of  Provilence. 
That  he  is  the  God  of  Providence,  and  that  he  revealed  him- 
self as  such,  is  very  clear,  for  he  told  Jacob,  "  Behold  I  am 
with  thee,  and  will  keep  thee  in  all  places  whither  thou 
goest,  and  I  will  bring  thee  again  to  this  land,  for  I  will  not 
leave  thee  till  I  have  done  that  which  I  have  spoken  to  thee 
of ; "  so  he  gave  Jacob  a  promise,  that  he  should  have  bread 
to  eat'  and  raiment  to  put  on,  and  should  come  again  to  that 
place  in  peace.  Christian,  thy  God  is  the  God  of  Providence. 
He  is  the  God  of  Bethel.  Doddridge's  hymn,  which  we  sang 
just  now,  thus  celebrates  his  praise — 

"  O  God  of  Bethel,  by  whose  hand 
Thy  people  still  are  fed  ; 
Who  through  this  weary  pilgrimage 
Hast  all  our  fathers  led." 

Let  us  think  of  it.  Brethren,  God  is  with  his  people  in  all 
places  wherever  they  go.  On  the  land  or  on  the  sea,  by  day 
or  by  night,  you  never  can  be  where  God  is  not.  It  is  impos- 
sible for  you  to  journey  out  of  your  Father's  dominions. 
You  may  live  in  a  mansion  or  a  hovel,  and  yet  still  be  in  his 
house,  for  his  house  is  of  vast  dimensions.  "  In  my  Father's 
house  are  many  mansions."  You  may  dwell  here  or  there, 
and  still  be  in  the  great  house  of  the  heavenly  Father. 

And  he  is  with  you  to  provide  you  with  all  things  need- 
ful. Has  not  it  been  so  until  now  ?  You  may  have  had 
some  very  hard  pinches.  Perhaps  you  have  partaken  the 
bitter  fare  of  widowhood.  Your  children  may  have  cried 
about  your  knee  for  daily  bread.  Perchance  you  have  been 
very  poor,  and  the  supply  you  have  received  has  been  scant. 
Still  you  are  alive.    Thy  food  has  been  given  thee,  and  thy 


294 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


waters  have  been  sure.  Thy  garments  are  worn,  but  not 
quite  worn  out.  Thy  shoes  about  thee  scarcely  defend  thee 
from  the  damp  ;  but  still  thou  art  not  altogether  unshod. 
Hitherto  the  Lord  hath  helped  thee.  Jehovah-Jireh  has 
been  thy  song.  The  Lord  has  provided.  He  whom  Jacob 
worshipped  as  the  God  of  Bethel,  has  been  the  God  of  Bethel 
till  now.  Canst  thou  not  trust  him  ?  The  little  birds  in  the 
winter  morning  sit  on  the  bare  boughs  and  sing  when  the 
snow  covers  all  the  ground,  and  they  cannot  tell  where  their 
breakfast  will  come  from.  They  do  the  first  duty,  they  sing, 
and  they  sing  before  they  have  had  their  breakfast,  and  God 
somehow  provides  for  them.  Seldom  do  you  pick  up  a  dead 
sparrow.  For  the  most  part  the  birds  of  heaven  are  fed. 
Perhaps  you  would  like  to  live  in  a  cage  and  be  fed  regularly, 
and  have  a  pension.  I  believe  that  more  of  those  birds  die 
that  are  taken  care  of  as  pets  by  men  and  women  than 
of  those  that  are  taken  care  of  by  God.  So  it  is  better 
for  you  to  trust  in  the  Lord  than  to  put  confidence  in  man. 
He  has  not  let  you  want,  nor  will  he,  even  to  your  journey's 
end.  Take  this  from  his  own  mouth.  "  Trust  in  the  Lord 
and  do  good;  so  shalt  thou  dwell  in  the  land,  and  verily 
thou  shalt  be  fed."  There  is  God's  "  verily  "  for  it.  Heaven 
and  earth  shall  pass  away,  but  that  "verily"  shall  never  fail. 

He  promised  Jacob,  too,  that  he  should  have  a  seed  and 
a  posterity.  It  did  not  look  like  it  as  Jacob  lay  there  ;  but 
yet  he  proved  its  verity  or  ever  he  came  back.  Why,  when 
he  returned  he  had  some  twelve  children  about  him.  There 
was  a  God  of  Bethel !  He  had  indeed  granted  him  the  de- 
sire of  his  heart.  As  the  good  man  said  a  little  while  after, 
"  With  my  staff  I  crossed  this  Jordan  ;  and  now  have  I 
become  two  bands."  Ah,  Jacob  !  he  promised  to  provide 
for  you.  Look  at  the  troop  of  children.  "  Ay,"  but  Jacob 
might  have  said,  "that  is  part  of  the  burden."  Nay,  then, 
but  listen  to  the  bleating  of  those  sheep.  Listen  to  the  low- 
ing of  the  cattle.    What  meaneth  that,  Jacob  ?    "  That  is 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


295 


the  provision  that  God  has  given  me  in  the  land  of  exile." 
Ah,  and  you  have  most  of  you  got  far  more  than  you  ever 
reckoned  upon.  You  have,  some  of  you,  to  thank  God 
indeed  for  what  he  has  done  for  you  in  providential  things, 
and  even  those  that  have  least  have  got  more  than  they 
deserved.  Let  them  recollect  that ;  and  however  poor  we 
may  be,  we  shall  never  be  as  poor  as  we  were  when  we  were 
born.  We  brought  nothing  into  this  world.  Come  as  low 
as  we  may,  we  shall  have  enough  to  float  us  into  heaven, 
depend  upon  that — just  enough  manna  to  last  until  we  get 
across  Jordan,  and  then  we  shall  eat  of  the  old  corn  of  the 
land  that  floweth  with  milk  and  honey. 

But  God  had  also  promised  Jacob  that  he  would  bring 
him  back  to  that  place  again,  and  that  was  another  engage- 
ment of  providence — that  he  was  to  go  there  and  be  brought 
back  again,  and  by  this  should  it  be  known  that  he  was  the 
God  of  Bethel.  Now  this  really  looked  at  one  time  very 
unlikely.  Seven  years  he  had  to  serve  for  Rachel,  and  then 
got  Leah  instead,  so  there  were  seven  more  years  to  serve  for 
Rachel.  Then  there  came  one  year  during  which  he  had  to 
be  after  the  spotted-sheep,  then  another  after  the  ring- 
streaked,  and  so  on  ;  so  it  did  not  look  as  if  he  should  ever 
get  away  from  Mesopotamia  at  peace.  Would  he  do  it  ? 
Yes,  he  would  drive  him  out  of  Laban's  house  somehow,  for 
return  to  his  fatherland  he  must.  Yet  as  soon  as  he  gets  out 
of  Laban's  house,  Laban  is  after  him  in  hot  haste.  I  do 
not  know  what  Laban  was  going  to  do — something  very 
horrible  indeed — going  to  slay  the  father  and  mother  with 
the  children ;  but  by  the  time  he  gets  close  up  to  Jacob  he 
cannot  help  himself  :  his  heart  is  changed.  He  wants  to 
kiss  his  daughters  and  his  grandchildren,  and  he  has  not 
got  any  thought  of  anger  in  him.  God  had*  warned  him  in 
a  dream  not  to  speak  to  Jacob  either  good  or  bad.  So  Laban 
tells  Jacob  that  he  is  very  sorry  that  he  did  not  know  that 
he  was  going,  for  he  would  have  sent  him  out  with  mirth 


290 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


and  with  songs,  with  tabret  and  with  harp.  Though  the 
truth  is  he  would  not  have  let  him  go  at  all.  But  God 
knew  how  to  manage  Laban,  though  Jacob  did  not ;  and 
when  Jacob  had  left  Laban's  land,  Jacob  had  dwelt  long 
enough  in  Laban's  land,  and  so  he  was  .never  to  pass  into  it 
again,  for  they  had  left  a  heap  of  stones,  and  that  reminded 
them  that  neither  of  them  was  to  go  over  those  stones  to 
hurt  one  another;  and  they  said,  "  the  Lord  watch  between 
us  when  we  are  absent  from  one  another."  And  they  did 
not  interfere  witn  one  another  any  more. 

There  are  many  things  in  providence  that  God  will  bring 
to  pass  in  a  very  mysterious  way.  He  uses  trial  and  trouble 
full  often  to  compass  his  wise  designs.  It  is  not  the  winds 
that  blow  directly  towards  the  harbor  that  are  always  the 
best  for  ships.  They  speed  better  with  cross  winds  some- 
times, as  you  might  think  them — winds  not  altogether  favor- 
able, as  some  would  imagine  because  they  have  a  little 
touch  of  another  quarter  in  them.  And  so  it  appears  to 
me  that  the  best  wind  to  take  a  man  to  heaven  is  not  the 
wind  that  blows  due  heavenward  all  the  time,  as  he  fondly] 
wishes,  but  a  cross  wind  that  gives  you  a  little  chop  of  sea 
now  and  then,  and  makes  you  feel  the  stress  of  anxiety  and 
adversity.  The  thing  a  man  wishes  for  his  own  welfare  is 
not  always  the  most  desirable.  Full  often  the  damage  we 
dreaded  has  brought  us  a  blessing  we  had  not  expected. 
Some  sad  reverse  has  issued  in  a  glad  result.  We  had  bet- 
ter leave  it  with  God  to  order  all  our  affairs.  Brethren,  God 
manages  providence  ;  you  may  rest  assured  of  that.  He 
stands  in  the  chariot  and  holds  the  reins.  Though  the 
steeds  be  furious,  he  holds  them  with  bit  and  bridle.  No- 
thing  happens  but  what  God  ordains  or  permits.  Nothing, 
however  terrible  it  may  seem,  can  thwart  his  everlasting 
purposes,  or  turn  aside  one  of  his  dear  children  from  the 
eternal  inheritance  to  which  he  has  appointed  them  all. 
Rest  ye  in  the  Lord,  for  the  Lord  liveth  and  the  Lord 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


297 


reigneth.  Stay  yourselves  upon  him.  Nothing  can  hurt 
you.  Make  him  your  refuge,  and  you  shall  find  a  most 
secure  abode,  and  rejoice  in  the  G-od  of  Bethel,  who  is  God 
!  of  providence. 

Next  to  this,  the  God  of  Bethel  is  the  God  of  the  promises. 
What  a  many  promises  he  made  that  night  to  Jacob  !  Yet 
he  kept  them  all.  So  the  God  of  Bethel  is  to  you  and  to  me 
'  the  God  of  promises. 

The  everlasting  covenant  was  confirmed  to  Jacob — "  I 
am  the  Lord  God  of  Abraham  thy  father,  and  the  God  of 
Isaac."    That  meant  that  he  was  the  God  of  the  covenant, 
t  And  the  God  with  whom  you  and  I  have  to  deal  is  a  God 
|  who  may  do  as  he  wills.    He  is  an  absolute  sovereign,  but 
he  never  can  do  anything  but  what  is  right.  Nevertheless, 
he  has  bound  himself — to  speak  with  reverence — with  bonds 
and  pledges  to  us  in  the  person  of  Jesus  Christ,  saying, 
"Surely,  blessing,  I  will  bless  thee."    There  is  a  covenant 
;  entered  into  on  our  behalf  by  the  Lord  Jesus  with  the  Father. 
It  brings  to  us  unnumbered  blessings,  assuredly  and  cer- 
tainly, for  God  cannot  lie,  and  he  has  given  us  two  immu- 
,  table  pledges,  that  we  may  have  strong  consolation,  and  never 
.  doubt  his  faithfulness.    Beloved,  the  God  of  the  promises  has 
i  appointed  your  lot  and  heritage,  and  you  shall  stand  in  it  at 
i  the  end  of  the  days.    The  God  of  the  promises  has  appeared 
to  you  in  Jesus  Christ,  and  to  you  also  has  he  sworn  an  oath  ; 
therefore,  you  also  may  rest  In  the  blood  of  Jesus,  which 
[  | makes  the  covenant  sure.    He  has  promised  never  to  leave 
)  his  people.    "I  will  not  leave  thee,"  saith  he  to  Jacob  ;  and 
j  he  says  the  like  to  you.    He  has  promised  that  he  will  never 
.  forget  to  give  what  he  has  declared  he  will  give.    I  will  not 
j  leave  thee  till  I  have  done  that  which  I  have  spoken  to  thee 
r  of."    Oh,  blessed  word  !    I  feel  as  if  my  mouth  were  closed 
i  and  words  failed  me.    The  divine  utterance  itself  is  so  rich, 
S  so  full  of  marrow  and  fatness,  that  to  talk  about  it  seems 
]  like  gilding  gold,  or  adding  whiteness  to  the  lily's  beauty. 
13* 


298 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


Only  take  it  home.  May  the  Spirit  of  God  apply  it.  The 
God  that  changes  not  has  made  all  the  promises,  yea  and 
amen,  in  Christ  Jesus  to  the  glory  of  God  by  us,  and  every 
one  of  his  promises  made  to  believers  shall  stand  fast  and 
firm,  though  earth's  old  columns  bow — "  though  heaven 
and  earth  shall  pass  away,  neither  jot  nor  tittle  of  his  word 
shall  fail." 

But  time  fails  me.  I  must  leave  this  inspiring  meditation 
just  to  notice  once  more  that  the  God  of  Bethel  is  the  God  of 
our  vows.  Do  not  forget  this  last,  for  it  is  the  practical 
part — the  God  of  Bethel  is  the  God  of  our  vows.  You  re- 
member, brethren,  Jacob  vowed  that  God  should  be  his  God. 
You  remember  when  you  made  a  like  vow. 

"  Oh,  happy  day  that  fixed  my  choice 
On  thee,  my  Saviour  and  my  God  ; 
Well  may  this  glowing  heart  rejoice 
And  tell  its  rapture  all  abroad. 
High  heaven  that  heard  that  solemn  vow, 
That  vow  renewed  shall  daily  hear, 
Till  in  life's  latest  hour  I  bow, 
And  bless  in  death  a  bond  so  dear." 

God  who  gave  himself  to  us  has  led  us  to  give  ourselves 
to  him.  Now  we  are  not  our  own,  for  we  are  bought  with  a 
price.  Looking  up  from  the  inmost  recesses  of  our  sincere 
hearts  we  can  say,  "  My  God,  my  Father,  thou  art  mine  for 
ever  and  forever."  And  then  Jacob  having  made  that  vow, 
said — "  this  stone  which  I  have  set  up  for  a  pillar  shall  be 
God's  house."  In  the  fresh  gratitude  of  his  heart  he  made  a 
solemn  dedication  to  the  Lord.  And  have  you  not  said 
something  like  it  ?  Did  not  you  give  your  house  to  God 
when  you  gave  yourself  to  him  ?  Have  you  not  given  to 
God  not  only  one  place  to  be  a  Bethel,  but  have  not  you 
asked  him  to  make  your  whole  life,  and  every  place  where 
you  are,  a  Bethel  to  his  name  ?  So  it  should  be,  and  I  trust 
so  it  is,  for  this  is  true  Christianity — not  to  account  this 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


299 


place  or  that  edifice  holy,  but  to  make  every  place,  be  it 
your  kitchen,  or  your  parlor,  your  bedchamber,  or  your 
workshop,  holy ;  and  the  pots  and  the  pans,  and  the  imple- 
ments of  your  daily  calling  all  holy  before  the  Lord.  Is  that 
your  vow  ?  Let  it  be  your  daily  desire  that  that  vow  should 
be  fulfilled — for  God  be  ye  resolved  to  live,  for  God  ready  to 
die,  if  need  be — never  doing  anything  but  what  you  can  ask 
his  blessing  on  ;  and  whether  ye  eat  or  drink,  or  whatever 
ye  do,  doing  all  to  the  glory  of  God,  and  doing  all  in  the 
•name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  give  thanks  to  God  and  the  Father 
by  him.    This  should  be  true. 

The  other  thing  that  Jacob  promised  was  that  he  would 
give  a  tenth  unto  the  Lord.  I  do  not  know  whether  any  of 
you  have  made  any  vow  of  that  kind.  I  suppose  there  are 
few  Christians  who  have  not,  at  some  time  or  other,  made  a 
vow.  Well,  brethren  and  sisters,  perform  your  vows  unto 
the  Lord.  God  forbid  that  we  should  ever  say  anything  in 
the  heat  of  emotion,  or  make  any  pledge  without  due  pre- 
meditation, for  God  is  not  to  be  mocked.  When  we  have 
once  devoted  anything  unto  the  Lord,  let  us  not  draw  back 
our  hand.  I  have  known  Christian  men  who  have  said,  "  If 
the  Lord  should  prosper  me  till  I  am  worth  such  and  such 
an  amount,  all  that  I  gain  beyond  it  shall  be  given  as  a  free- 
will offering  to  him."  I  know  one  or  two  of  the  largest 
givers  in  Christendom  who  are  thus  fulfilling  the  vows  they 
made.  Yet  I  have  also  known  some  persons  entangled  by 
their  vows.  They  have  had  in  perplexity  to  ask,  "  What 
am  I  to  do  ?  I  am  in  such  a  position  that  a  larger  capital 
than  I  ever  contemplated  is  really  necessary  for  the  carrying 
on  of  my  business  :  yet  I  have  pledged  myself  to  save  and 
call  my  own  no  more  than  a  definite  sum  which  I  have 
already  in  possession."  You  must  take  heed  how  you  vow, 
for  you  may  entangle  yourself.  Very  often  it  is  best  not  to 
vow  at  all ;  but  if  in  the  hour  of  sorrow  you  have  opened 
your  mouth  unto  the  Lord,  take  heed  that  you  do  not  with- 


300 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


draw  from  the  thing  your  heart  has  purposed,  and  your  lips 
have  uttered.  Sometimes  the  Lord  directs  his  people  to 
make  some  solemn  pledge,  which  otherwise  they  might  not 
have  done,  on  purpose  that  they  may  do  more  for  the  glory 
and  honor  of  his  name  than  they  have  ever  done  before.  I 
remember  one  night,  when  I  was  about  to  preach,  my  sub- 
ject went  from  me,  my  text  and  every  thought  about  it  were 
gone.  It  was  in  a  village  chapel,  and  I  sat  there  I  know  not 
in  what  state  of  trepidation.  I  breathed  my  soul  to  God ; 
and  there  came  before  me  as  in  a  moment  the  face  of  a  cer* 
tain  worthy  brother — a  poor  man,  exceedingly  poor — who 
wanted  me  to  assist  him  in  his  education,  but  I  had  not  the 
means  just  then  :  I  did  not  know  how  to  do  it.  I  breathed 
a  prayer  to  God  that  he  would  help  me,  and  I  promised  that 
that  brother  should  be  taken.  He  was  one  of  my  earliest 
students,  and  he  has  been  honored  of  God,  and  blessed  in 
the  conversion  of  souls  for  the  past  sixteen  or  seventeen 
years.  I  do  not  think  that  I  should  ever  have  taken  him  if  it 
had  not  been  for  that  dilemma  of  mine.  And  when  I  had 
vowed  the  vow  unto  the  Lord  that  I  would  find  the  money 
for  him,  even  if  I  went  without  myself,  my  sermon  came 
back  to  me,  and  I  preached  with  pleasure,  and  I  hope  with 
profit.  I  was  glad  of  my  vow,  and  I  was  able  to  keep  it. 
Sometimes  such  things  are  right.  At  other  times  it  would 
be  absurd  to  make  such  a  vow.  Better  to  feel  that  every- 
thing belongs  to  God  already,  and  therefore  you  have  no- 
thing to  spare  to  vow  with,  because  you  have  already  conse- 
crated everything  that  you  had  from  first  to  last  to  his  glory. 
Yet  if  you  ever  do  set  up  an  Ebenezer  in  your  pilgrimage, 
be  sure  to  pour  some  oil  out  of  your  cruse  at  the  time  to 
hallow  it,  as  Jacob  did.  Then  the  vows  you  have  ratified 
will  be  sweet  to  look  back  upon.  The  God  of  Bethel,  who 
remembers  the  vow  that  thou  vowedst  un^o  him,  will  be  the 
more  precious  unto  thy  soul.  I  should  not  wonder  if  that 
woman  who  poured  tl;e  alabaster  box  of  ointment  on  Christ's 


THE  GOD  OF  BETHEL. 


301 


head  used  often  to  think  what  a  blessed  thing  it  was  that  she 
did.  I  am  sure  that  there  was  not  one  time  in  all  her  life 
that  she  ever  said,  "  Oh,  how  handy  the  money  of  that 
alabaster  box  would  come  in  now  ;  I  wish  I  had  not  spent 
it."  No,  she  would  think  it  over  oftentimes.  Perhaps 
she  became  a  poor  woman  afterwards.  At  any  rate,  Christ 
was  gone,  and  she  would  say,  "  Oh,  how  glad  I  am  that 
when  the  opportunity  offered  I  seized  it."  Though  Judas 
said,  "  To  what  purpose  is  this  waste  ?  "  she  did  not  care 
much  about  Judas.  She  would  say,  "  I  anointed  my  blessed 
Master  and  filled  the  house  with  the  sweet  perfume,  and 
I  am  glad  I  did  it,  and  I  shall  be  glad  even  when  I  see 
his  face  in  heaven."  So  will  you  often  feel.  Take  no  credit 
to  yourself  for  anything  you  do.  That  we  could  never  tol- 
erate. Yet  be  thankful  if  the  Lord  leads  you  in  his  provi- 
dence, and  enables  you  by  his  grace  to  do  something  special 
for  him.  It  will  make  you  think  with  all  the  more  sweetness 
of  the  God  of  Bethel  as  you  read  of  the  way  in  which  God 
accepts  your  votive  offering ;  for  my  text  runs  like  this  : 
"I  am  the  God  of  Bethel,  where  thou  anointedst  the  pillar, 
and  where  thou  vowedst  a  vow  unto  me."  So  the  vow  is 
part  and  parcel  of  the  title  which  God  loves  to  remember, 
and  would  have  us  lovingly  remember  too. 

Dear  friends,  I  am  afraid  there  are  some  among  you 
who  do  not  know  the  God  of  Bethel.  Let  me  tell  you 
that  he  is  the  God  you  want — the  God  of  Jesus  Christ. 
Jesus  Christ  is  the  only  ladder  for  your  poor  souls  to  get 
to  heaven  by.  This  is  a  ladder  with  easy  rounds.  It  is 
a  ladder  strong  enough  to  bear  the  biggest  sinner  that 
ever  tried  to  bear  his  weight  on  it,  and  if  thou  wilt  but  come 
and  trust  Jesus,  thou  shalt  get  up  that  ladder  even  to  the 
place  where  Jehovah  dwells  in  all  his  purity,  and  thou  shalt 
be  with  him  forever  and  ever. 


SERMON  XVI. 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY"  SLAVE. 
Delivered  at  the  Metro polit an  Tabernacle,  New- 

INGTON". 

"  Perhaps  he  therefore  departed  for  a  season,  that  thou  shouldest 
receive  him  forever." — Philemon  15. 

Nature  is  selfish,  but  grace  is  loving.  He  who  boasts 
that  he  cares  for  nobody,  and  nobody  cares  for  him,  is  the 
reverse  of  a  Christian,  for  Jesus  Christ  enlarges  the  heart 
when  he  cleanses  it.  None  so  tender  and  sympathetic  as  our 
Master,  and  if  we  be  truly  his  disciples,  the  same  mind  will 
be  in  us  which  was  also  in  Jesus  Christ.  The  apostle  Paul 
was  eminently  large-hearted  and  sympathetic.  Surely  he 
had  enough  to  do  at  Rome  to  bear  his  own  troubles  and  to 
preach  the  gospel.  If,  like  the  priest  in  the  parable  of  the 
good  Samaritan,  he  had  "  passed  by  on  the  other  side,"  he 
might  have  been  excused,  for  he  was  on  the  urgent  business 
of  that  Master  who  once  said  to  his  seventy  messengers, 
"  Salute  no  man  by  the  way."  We  might  not  have  won- 
dered if  he  had  said,  "  I  cannot  find  time  to  attend  to  the 
wants  of  a  runaway  slave."  But  Paul  was  not  of  that  mind. 
He  had  been  preaching,  and  Onesimus  had  been  converted, 
and  henceforth  he  regarded  him  as  his  own  son. .  I  do  not 
know  why  Onesimus  came  to  Paul.  Perhaps  he  went  to  him 
as  a  great  many  scapegraces  have  come  to  me— because  their 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE.  303 

fathers  knew  me ;  and  so,  as  Onesimus's  master  had  known 
Paul,  the  servant  applied  to  his  master's  friend,  perhaps  to 
beg  some  little  help  in  his  extremity.  Anyhow,  Paul  seized 
the  opportunity  and  preached  to  him  Jesus,  and  the  runaway 
slave  became  a  believer  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Paul 
watched  him,  admired  the  character  of  his  convert,  and 
was  glad  to  be  served  by  him,  and  when  he  thought  it  right 
that  he  should  return  to  his  master,  Philemon,  he  took  a 
deal  of  trouble  to  compose  a  letter  of  apology  for  him,  a 
letter  which  shows  long  thinking,  since  every  word  is  well 
selected  ;  albeit  that  the  Holy  Spirit  dictated  it,  inspiration 
does  not  prevent  a  man's  exercising  thought  and  care  on 
what  he  writes,  filvery  word  is  chosen  for  a  purpose.  If  he 
had  been  pleading  for  himself,  he  could  not  have  pleaded 
more  earnestly  or  wisely.  Paul,  as  you  know,  was  not  accus- 
tomed to  write  letters  with  his  own  hand,  but  dictated  to  an 
amanuensis.  It  is  supposed  that  he  had  an  affection  of  the 
eyes,  and  therefore  when  he  did  write  he  used  large  capital 
letters,  as  he  says  in  one  of  his  epistles,  "  Ye  see  how  large  a 
letter  I  have  written  unto  you  with  my  own  hand."  The 
epistle  was  not  a  large  one,  but  he  probably  alluded  to  the 
largeness  of  the  characters  which  he  was  obliged  to  use  when- 
ever he  himself  wrote.  This  letter  to  Philemon,  at  least  part 
of  it,  was  not  dictated,  but  was  written  by  his  own  hand. 
See  the  nineteenth  verse.  "I  Paul  have  written  it  with 
mine  own  hand.  I  will  repay  it."  It  is  the  only  note  of 
hand  which  I  recollect  in  the  Scripture,  but  there  it  is — 
an  I  0  U  for  whatever  amount  Onesimus  may  have  stolen. 

Let  us  cultivate  a  large-hearted  spirit,  and  sympathize 
with  the  people  of  God,  especially  new  converts,  if  we  find 
them  in  trouble  through  past  wrong-doing.  If  anything 
needs  setting  right,  do  not  let. us  condemn  them  off-hand, 
and  say,  "You  have  been  stealing  from  your  master,  have 
you  ?  You  profess  to  be  converted,  but  we  do  not  believe 
it."    Such  suspicious  and  severe  treatment  may  be  deserved, 


304  THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE. 

but  it  is  not  such  as  the  love  of  Christ  would  suggest.  Try 
and  set  the  fallen  ones  right,  and  give  them  again,  as  we  say, 
"a  fair  start  in  the  world."  If  God  has  forgiven  them, 
surely  we  may,  and  if  Jesus  Christ  has  received  them,  they 
cannot  be  too  bad  for  us  to  receive.  Let  us  do  for  them 
what  Jesus  would  have  done  had  he  been  here,  so  shall  we 
truly  be  the  disciples  of  Jesus. 

Thus  I  introduce  to  you  the  text,  and  I  notice  concern- 
ing it,  first  that  it  concerns  a  singular  instance  of  divine 
grace.  Secondly,  it  brings  before  us  a  case  of  sin  overruled. 
And,  thirdly,  it  may  be  regarded  as  an  example  of  relation- 
ship improved  hy  grace,  for  now  he  that  was  a  servant  for  a 
season  will  abide  with  Philemon  all  his  tifetime,  and  be  no 
more  a  servant  but  a  brother  beloved. 

I.  But  first  let  us  look  at  Onesimus  as  AN  instance  op 

DIVINE  GRACE. 

We  see  the  grace  of  God  in  his  election.  He  was  a  slave. 
In  those  days  slaves  were  very  ignorant,  untaught,  and  de- 
graded. Being  barbarously  used,  they  were  for  the  most 
part  themselves  sunk  in  the  lowest  barbarism,  neither  did 
their  masters  attempt  to  raise  them  out  of  it.  It  is  possible 
that  Philemon's  attempt  to  do  good  to  Onesimus  may  have 
been  irksome  to  the  man,  and  he  may  therefore  have  fled 
from  his  house.  His  master's  prayers,  warnings,  and  Chris- 
tian regulations  may  have  been  disagreeable  to  him,  and 
therefore  he  ran  away.  He  wronged  his  master,  which  he 
could  scarcely  have  done  if  he  had  not  been  treated  as  a 
confidential  servant  to  some  extent.  Possibly  the  unusual 
kindness  of  Philemon,  and  the  trust  reposed  in  him  may 
have  been  too  much  for  his  untrained  nature.  We  know  not 
what  he  stole,  but  evidently  he  had  taken  something,  for  the 
apostle  says,  "If  he  hath  wronged  thee,  or  oweth  thee  aught, 
put  that  on  mine  account."  He  ran  away  from  Colosse, 
therefore,  and  thinking  that  he  would  be  less  likely  to  be 
discovered  by  the  ministers  of  justice,  he  sought  the  city  of 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE. 


305 


Rome,  which  was  then  as  large  as  the  city  of  London  now  is, 
and  perhaps  larger.  There  in  those  back  slums,  such  as  the 
Jews'  quarter  in  Rome  now  is,  Onesimus  would  go  and  hide  ; 
or  amongst  those  gangs  of  thieves  which  infested  the  impe- 
rial city,  he  would  not  be  known  or  heard  of  any  more,  so  he 
thought ;  and  he  could  live  the  free  and  easy  life  of  a  thief. 
Yet,  mark  you,  the  Lord  looked  out  of  heaven  with  an  eye 
of  love,  and  set  that  eye  on  Onesimus. 

Were  there  no  free  men,  that  God  must  elect  a  slave  ? 
Were  there  no  faithful  servants,  that  he  must  choose  one 
who  had  embezzled  his  master's  money  ?  Were  there  none 
of  the  educated  and  polite,  that  he  must  needs  look  upon  a 
barbarian  ?  Were  there  none  among  the  moral  and  excel- 
lent, that  infinite  love  should  fix  itself  upon  this  degraded 
being,  who  was  now  mixed  up  with  the  very  scum  of  society  ? 
And  what  the  scum  of  society  was  in  old  Rome  I  should  not 
like  to  think,  for  the  upper  classes  were  about  as  brutalized 
in  their  general  habits  as  we  can  very  well  conceive  ;  aud 
what  the  lowest  scum  of  all  must  have  been,  none  of  us  can 
tell.  Onesimus  was  part  and  parcel  of  the  dregs  of  a  sink  of 
sin.  Read  Paul's  first  chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans, 
if  you  can,  and  you  will  see  in  what  a  horrible  state  the 
heathen  world  was  at  that  time,  and  Onesimus  was  among 
the  worst  of  the  worst ;  and  yet  eternal  love,  which  passed  by 
kings  and  princes,  and  left  Pharisees  and  Sadducees,  philoso- 
phers and  magi,  to  stumble  in  the  dark  as  they  chose,  fixed 
its  eye  upon  this  poor  benighted  creature  that  he  might  be 
made  a  vessel  to  honor,  fit  for  the  Master's  use. 

"  When  the  Eternal  bows  the  skies 
To  visit  earthly  things, 
With  scorn  divine  he  turns  his  eyes 
From  towers  of  haughty  kings. 

He  bids  his  awful  chariot  roll 

Far  downward  f rooi  the  skies, 
To  visit  every  humble  soul, 

With  pleasure  in  his  eyes. 


306 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE. 


Why  should  the  Lord  that  reigns  above 

Disdain  so  lofty  kings  ? 
Say,  Lord,  and  why  such  looks  of  love 

Upon  such  worthless  things  ? 

Mortals,  be  dumb  ;  what  creature  dares 

Dispute  his  awful  will  ? 
Ask  no  account  of  his  affairs, 

But  tremble  and  be  still. 

Just  like  his  nature  is  his  grace, 

All  sovereign,  and  all  free  ; 
Great  God,  how  searchless  are  thy  ways, 

How  deep  thy  judgments  be  !  " 

"  I  will  have  mercy  on  whom  I  will  have  mercy,  and  I  will 
have  compassion  on  whom  I  will  have  compassion,"  rolls  like 
thunder  alike  from  the  cross  of  Calvary  and  the  mount  of 
Sinai.  The  Lord  is  a  sovereign,  and  he  doeth  as  he  pleases. 
Let  us  admire  that  marvellous  electing  love  which  selected 
such  a  one  as  Onesimus. 

Grace  also  is  to  be  observed,  in  the  next  place,  in  the 
conversion  of  this  runaway  slave. 

Look  at  him  !  How  unlikely  he  appears  to  become  a 
convert.  He  is  an  Asiatic  slave  of  about  the  same  grade  as 
an  ordinary  Lascar,  or  heathen  Chinee.  He  was,  however, 
worse  than  the  ordinary  Lascar,  who  is  certainly  free,  and 
probably  an  honest  man,  if  he  is  nothing  else.  This  man 
has  been  dishonest,  and  he  was  daring  withal,  for  after 
taking  his  master's  property  he  was  bold  enough  to  make  a 
long  journey  from  Colosse  to  reach  Rome.  But  everlasting 
love  means  to  convert  the  man,  and  converted  he  shall  be. 
He  may  have  heard  Paul  preach  at  Colosse  and  Athens,  but 
yet  he  had  not  been  impressed.  At  Eome,  Paul  was  not 
preaching  in  St.  Peter's  :  it  was  in  no  such  noble  building. 
Paul  was  not  preaching  in  a  place  like  the  Tabernacle, 
where  Onesimus  could  have  a  comfortable  seat — no  such 
place  as  that — but  it  was  probably  down  there  at  the  back  of 


THE  STORY  OF  A  EUNAWAT  SLAVE.  307 

the  Palatine  hill,  where  the  praetorian  guard  have  their  lodg 
ings,  and  where  there  was  a  prison  called  the  Praetorium. 
In  a  bare  room  in  the  barrack  prison  Paul  sat  with  a  soldier 
chained  to  his  hand,  preaching  to  all  who  were  admitted  to 
hear  him,  and  there  it  was  that  the  grace  of  God  reached  the 
heart  of  this  wild  young  man  ;  and,  oh,  what  a  change  it 
made  in  him  immediately !  Now  you  see  him  repenting  of 
his  sin,  grieved  to  think  he  has  wronged  a  good  man,  vexed 
to  see  the  depravity  of  his  heart  as  well  as  the  error  of  his 
life.  He  weeps  ;  Paul  preaches  to  him  Christ  crucified,  and 
the  glance  of  joy  is  in  his  eye  :  and  from  that  heavy  heart  a 
load  is  taken.  New  thoughts  light  up  that  dark  mind  ;  the 
very  face  is  changed,  and  the  entire  man  renewed,  for  the 
grace  of  God  can  turn  the  lion  to  a  lamb,  the  raven  to  a  dove. 

Some  of  us,  I  have  no  doubt,  are  quite  as  wonderful  in- 
stances of  divine  election  and  effectual  calling  as  Onesimus 
was.  Let  us,  therefore,  record  the  loving  kindness  of  the 
Lord,  and  let  us  say  to  ourselves,  "Christ  shall  have  the 
glory  of  it.  The  Lord  hath  done  it ;  and  unto  the  Lord  be 
honor,  world  without  end." 

The  grace  of  God  was  conspicuous  in  the  character  which 
it  ivrought  in  Onesimus  upon  his  conversion,  for  he  appears 
to  have  been  helpful,  useful,  and  profitable.  So  Paul  says. 
Paul  was  willing  to  have  had  him  as  an  associate,  and  it 
is  not  every  man  that  is  converted  that  we  should  altogether 
choose  as  a  companion.  There  are  odd  people  to  be  met 
with  who  will  go  to  heaven,  we  have  no  doubt,  for  they 
are  pilgrims  on  the  right  way,  but  we  would  like  to  keep  on 
the  other  side  of  the  road,  for  they  are  cross-grained,  and 
there  is  a  something  about  them  that  one's  nature  can  no 
more  delight  in  than  the  palate  can  take  pleasure  in  nauseous 
physic.  They  are  a  sort  of  spiritual  hedgehogs  :  they  are 
alive  and  useful,  and  no  doubt  they  illustrate  the  wisdom 
and  patience  of  God,  but  they  are  not  good  companions  : 
one  would  not  like  to  carry  them  in  his  bosom.    But  Onesi- 


308  THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE. 

mus  was  evidently  of  a  kind,  tender,  loving  spirit.  Paul  at 
once  called  him  brother,  and  would  have  liked  to  retain  him. 
When  he  sent  him  back,  was  it  not  a  clear  proof  of  change 
of  heart  in  Onesimus  that  he  would  go  back  ?  Away  as  he 
was  in  Eome,  he  might  have  passed  on  from  one  town  to 
another,  and  have  remained  perfectly  free,  but  feeling  that 
he  was  under  some  kind,  of  bond  to  his  master — especially 
since  he  had  injured  him — he  takes  Paul's  advice  to  return 
to  his  old  position.  He  will  go  back,  and  take  a  letter  of 
apology  or  introduction  to  his  master  ;  for  he  feels  that  it  is 
his  duty  to  make  reparation  for  the  wrong  that  he  has  done. 
I  always  like  to  see  a  resolve  to  make  restitution  of  former 
wrongs  in  people  who  profess  to  be  converted.  If  they  have 
taken  any  money  wrongfully  they  ought  to  repay  it ;  it  were 
well  if  they  returned  sevenfold.  If  we  have  in  any  way 
robbed  or  wronged  another,  I  think  the  first  instincts  of 
grace  in  the  heart  will  suggest  compensation  in  all  ways 
within  our  power.  Do  not  think  it  is  to  be  got  over  by  say- 
ing, "  God  has  forgiven  me,  and  therefore  I  may  leave  it." 
No,  dear  friend,  but  insomuch  as  God  has  forgiven  you,  try 
and  undo  all  the  wrong,  and  prove  the  sincerity  of  your 
repentance  by  so  doing.  So  Onesimus  will  go  back  to  Phile- 
mon, and  work  out  his  term  of  years  with  him,  or  otherwise 
do  Philemon's  wishes,  for  though  he  might  have  preferred  to 
wait  upon  Paul,  his  first  duty  was  due  to  the  man  whom  he 
had  injured.  That  showed  a  gentle,  humble,  honest,  up- 
right spirit ;  and  let  Onesimus  be  commended  for  it  :  nay, 
let  the  grace  of  God  be  extolled  for  it.  Look  at  the  differ- 
ence between  the  man  who  robbed,  and  the  man  who  now 
comes  back  to  be  profitable  to  his  master. 

What  wondefs  the  grace  of  God  has  done  !  Brethren,  let 
me  add — What  wonders  the  grace  of  God  can  do  !  Many 
plans  are  employed  in  the  world  for  the  reformation  of  the 
wicked  and  the  reclaiming  of  the  fallen,  and  to  every  one  of 
these,  as  far  as  they  are  rightly  bottomed,  we  wish  good 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE.  309 

success  ;  for  whatever  things  are  lovely  and  pure,  and  of  good 
report,  we  wish  them  God  speed.  But  mark  this  word, — the 
true  reforming  of  the  drunkard  lies  in  giving  him  a  new 
heart ;  the  true  reclaiming  of  the  harlot  is  to  be  found  in  a 
renewed  nature.  Purity  will  never  come  to  fallen  women  by 
those  hideous  Contagious  Diseases  Acts,  which,  to  my  mind, 
wear,  like  Cain,  a  curse  upon  their  forehead.  Womanhood 
will  but  sink  the  lower  under  such  laws.  The  harlot  must 
be  washed  in  the  Saviour's  blood,  or  she  will  never  be  clean. 
The  lowest  strata  of  society  will  never  be  brought  into  the 
light  of  virtue,  sobriety,  and  purity,  except  by  Jesus  Christ 
and  his  gospel ;  and  we  njust  stick  to  that.  Let  all  others 
do  what  they  like,  but  God  forbid  that  I  should  glory  save  in 
the  cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  I  see  certain  of  my 
brethren  fiddling  away  at  the  branches  of  the  tree  of  vice 
with  their  wooden  saws  ;  but,  as  for  the  gospel,  it  lays  the 
axe  at  the  roots  of  the  whole  forest  of  evil,  and  if  it  be  fairly 
received  into  the  heart  it  fells  all  the  upas  trees  at  once,  and 
instead  of  them  there  spring  up  the  fir  tree,  the  pine  tree, 
and  the  box  tree  together,  to  beautify  the  house  of  our  Mas- 
ter's glory.  Let  us,  when  we  see  what  the  Spirit  of  God  can 
do  for  men,  publish  the  grace  of  God,  and  extol  it  with  all 
our  might. 

II.  And  now,  secondly,  we  have  in  our  text  and  its  con- 
nections, a  very  interesting  instance  of  sin  overruled. 

Onesimus  had  no  right  to  rob  his  master  and  run  away ; 
out  God  was  pleased  to  make  use  of  that  crime  for  his  con- 
version. It  brought  him  to  Eome,  and  so  brought  him 
where  Paul  was  preaching,  and  thus  it  brought  him  to 
Christ,  and  to  his  right  mind.  Now,  when  we  speak  of 
this,  we  must  be  cautious.  When  Paul  says,  "  Perhaps  he 
departed  for  a  season,  that  thou  shouldst  receive  him  for- 
ever," he  does  not  excuse  his  departure.  He  does  not  make 
it  out  that  Onesimus  did  right — not  for  a  moment.  Sin  is 
sin,  and  whatever  sin  may  be  overruled  to  do,  yet  sin  is  still 


310 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE. 


sin.    The  crucifixion  of  our  Saviour  has  brought  the  greatest  |  w 
conceivable  blessings  upon  mankind,  yet  none  the  less  it  was  tc 
"with  wicked  hands"  that  they  took  Jesus  and  crucified  i 
him.    The  selling  of  Joseph  into- Egypt  was  the  means  in  p 
the  hand  of  God  of  the  preservation  of  Jacob,  and  his  sons,  g 
in  the  time  of  famine ;  but  his  brethren  had  nothing  to  do  i 
with  that,  and  they  were  none  the  less  guilty  for  having  sold  \ 
their  brother  for  a  slave.    Let  it  always  be  remembered  that  a 
the  faultiness  or  virtue  of  an  act  is  not  contingent  upon  the  ] 
result  of  that  act.    If,  for  instance,  a  man  who  has  been  set  i 
on  a  railway  to  turn  the  switch  forgets  to  do  it,  you  call  it  a  t 
very  great  crime  if  the  train  con%es  to  mischief  and  a  dozen  j 
people  are  killed.    Yes,  but  the  crime  is  the  same  if  nobody  is  | 
killed.    It  is  not  the  result  of  the  carelessness,  but  the  care- 
lessness itself  which  deserves  punishment.    If  it  were  the 
man's  duty  to  turn  the  switch  in  such-and-such  a  way,  and 
his  not  doing  so  should  even  by  some  strange  accident  turn  to 
the  saving  of  a  life,  the  man  would  be  equally  blameworthy. 
There  would  be  no  credit  due  to  him,  for  if  his  duty  lies  in 
a  certain  line,  his  fault  also  lies  in  a  certain  line,  namely, 
the  neglecting  of  that  duty.    So  if  God  overrules  sin  for 
good,  as  he  sometimes  does,  it  is  none  the  less  sin.    It  is  sin 
just  as  much  as  ever,  only  there  is  so  much  the  more  glory  to 
the  wonderful  wisdom  and  grace  of  God  who,  out  of  evil 
brings  forth  good,  and  so  does  what  only  omnipotent  wisdom 
can  perform.    Onesimus  is  not  excused,  then,  for  having 
embezzled  his  master's  goods  nor  for  having  left  him  without 
right ;  he  still  is  a  transgressor,  but  God's  grace  is  glorified. 

Remember,  too,  that  this  must  be  noticed — that  when 
Onesimus  left  his  master  he  was  performing  an  action  the 
results  of  which,  in  all  probability,  would  have  been  ruinous 
to  him.  He  was  living  as  a  trusted  dependent  beneath  the 
roof  of  a  kind  master,  who  had  a  church  in  his  house.  If  I 
read  the  epistle  rightly,  he  had  a  godly  mistress  and  a  godly 
master,  and  he  had  an  opportunity  of  learning  the  gospel 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE. 


311 


continually ;  but  this  reckless  young  blade,  very  likely, 
could  not  bear  it,  and  could  have  lived  more  contentedly 
with  a  heathen  master,  who  would  have  beaten  him  one  day 
and  made  him  drunk  another.  The  Christian  master  Ke 
could  not  bear,  so  away  he  went.  He  threw  away  the  oppor- 
tunities of  salvation,  and  he  went  to  Rome,  and  he  must 
have  gone  into  the  lowest  part  of  the  city,  and  associated, 
as  I  have  already  told  you,  with  the  very  grossest  company. 
Now,  had  it  come  to  pass  that  he  had  joined  in  the  insur- 
rections of  the  slaves  which  took  place  frequently  about  that 
time,  as  he  in  all  probability  would  have  done  had  not  grace 
prevented,  he  would  have  been  put  to  death  as  others  had 
been.  He  would  have  had  short  shrift  in  Eome  :  half  sus- 
pect a  man  and  oS  with  his  head  was  the  rule  towards  slaves 
and  vagabonds.  Onesimus  was  just  the  very  man  who  would 
have  been  likely  to  be  hurried  to  death  and  to  eternal  destruc- 
tion. He  had  put  his  head,  as  it  were,  between  the  lion's  jaws 
by  what  he  had  done.  When  a  young  man  suddenly  leaves 
home  and  goes  to  London,  we  know  what  it  means.  When 
his  friends  do  not  know  where  he  is,  and  he  does  not  want 
them  to  know,  we  are  aware,  within  a  little,  where  he  is  and 
what  he  is  at.  What  Onesimus  was  doing  I  do  not  know, 
but  he  was  certainly  doing  his  best  to  ruin  himself.  His 
course,  therefore,  is  to  be  judged,  as  far  as  he  is  concerned, 
by  what  it  wTas  likely  to  bring  him  to  ;  and  though  it  did  not 
bring  him  to  it,  that  was  no  credit  to  him,  but  all  the  honor 
of  it  is  due  to  the  overruling  power  of  God. 

See,  dear  brethren,  how  God  overruled  all.  Thus  had 
the  Lord  purposed.  Nobody  shall  be  able  to  touch  the 
heart  of  Onesimus  but  Paul.  Onesimus  is  living  at  Colosse  ; 
Paul  cannot  come  there,  he  is  in  prison.  It  is  needful,  then, 
that  Onesimus  must  be  got  to  Paul.  Suppose  the  kindness 
of  Philemon's  heart  had  prompted  him  to  say  to  Onesimus, 
"I  want  you  to  go  to  Eome,  and  find  Paul  out  and  hear 
him."    This  naughty  servant  would  have  said,  "lam  not 


312  THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLATE. 

going  to  risk  my  life  to  hear  a  sermon.  If  I  go  with  the 
money  you  are  sending  to  Paul,  or  with  the  letter,  I  shall 
deliver  it,  but  I  want  none  of  his  preaching."  Sometimes, 
you  know,  when  people  are  brought  to  hear  a  preacher  with 
the  view  of  their  being  converted,  if  they  have  any  idea  of  it, 
it  is  about  the  very  last  thing  likely  to  happen,  because  they 
go  there  resolved  to  be  fire-proof,  and  so  the  preaching  does 
not  come  home  to  them  :  and  it  would  probably  have  been 
just  so  with  Onesimus.  No,  no,  he  was  not  to  be  won  in 
that  way,  he  must  be  got  to  Eome  another  way.  How  shall 
it  be  done  ?  Well,  the  devil  shall  do  it,  not  knowing  that  he 
will  be  losing  a  willing  servant  thereby.  The  devil  tempts 
Onesimus  to  steal.  Onesimus  does  it,  and  when  he  has 
stolen  he  is  afraid  of  being  discovered,  and  so  he  makes 
tracks  for  Rome  as  quickly  as  he  can,  and  gets  down  among 
the  back  slums,  and  there  he  feels  what  the  prodigal  felt — a 
hungry  belly,  and  that  is  one  of  the  best  preachers  in  the 
world  to  some  people  :  their  conscience  is  reached  in  that 
way.  Being  very  hungry,  not  knowing  what  to  do,  and  no 
man  giving  anything  to  him,  he  thinks  whether  there  is 
anybody  in  Rome  that  would  take  pity  on  him.  He  does 
not  know  anybody  in  Rome  at  all,  and  is  likely  to  starve. 
Perhaps  one  morning  there  was  a  Christian  woman — I  should 
not  wonder — who  was  going  to  hear  Paul,  and  she  saw  this 
poor  man  sitting  crouched  up  on  the  steps  of  a  temple,  and 
she  went  to  him  and  spoke  about  his  soul.  "  Soul,"  said 
he,  "  I  care  nothing  about  that,  but  my  body  would  thank  you 
for  something  to  eat.  I  am  starving."  She  replied,  "  Come 
with  me,  then,"  and  she  gave  him  bread,  and  then  she  said, 
"I  do  tltis  for  Jesus  Christ's  sake."  "Jesus  Christ!"  he 
said,  "  I  have  heard  of  him.  I  used  to  hear  of  him  over 
at  Colosse."  "  Whom  did  you  hear  -speak  about  him  ?  "  the 
woman  would  ask.  "  Why,  a  short  man,  with  weak  eyes,  a 
great  preacher,  named  Paul,  who  used  to  come  to  my  mas- 
ter's house."    "  Why,  I  am  going  to  hear  him  preach,"  the 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE.  313 

woman  would  say,  "  will  you  come  and  hear  him  with  me  ?" 
"Well,  I  think  I  should  like  to  hear  him  again.  He  always 
had  a  kind  word  to  say  to  the  poor."  So  he  goes  in  and 
pushes  his  way  among  the  soldiers,  and  Paul's  Master  incites 
Paul  to  speak  the  right  word.  It  may  have  heen  so,  or  it 
may  have  been  the  other  way — that  not  knowing  anybody 
else  at  all,  he  thought,  **  Well,  there  is  Paul,  I  know.  He 
is  here  a  prisoner,  and  I  will  go  down  and  see  what  prison 
he  is  in."  He  goes  down  to  the  praetorium  and  finds  him 
there,  tells  him  of  his  extreme  poverty,  and  Paul  talks  to 
him,  and  then  he  confesses  the  wrong  he  bus  done,  and 
Paul,  after  teaching  him  a  little  while,  says,  "Now,  you 
must  go  back  and  make  amends  to  your  master  for  the 
wrong  you  have  done."  It  may  have  been  either  of  these 
ways  ;  at  any  rate  the  Lord  must  have  Onesimus  in  Rome  to 
hear  Paul,  and  the  sin  of  Onesimus,  though  perfectly  volun- 
tary on  his  part,  so  that  God  had  no  hand  in  it,  is  yet  over- 
ruled by  a  mysterious  providence  to  bring  him  where  the 
gospel  shall  be  blest  to  his  soul. 

Now,  I  want  to  speak  to  some  of  you  Christian  people 
about  this  matter.  Have  you  a  son  who  has  left  home  ?  Is 
he  a  wilful,  wayward  young  man,  who  has  gone  away  because 
he  could  not  bear  the  restraints  of  a  Christian  family  ?  It  is 
a  sad  thing  it  should  be  so — a  very  sad  thing,  but  do  not 
despond  or  even  have  a  thought  of  despair  about  him.  You 
do  not  know  where  he  is,  but  God  does  ;  and  you  cannot 
follow  _him,  but  the  Spirit  of  God  can.  He  is  going  a  voy- 
age to  Shanghai.  Ah,  there  may  be  a  Paul  at  Shanghai  who 
is  to  be  the  means  of  his  salvation,  and  as  that  Paul  is  not  in 
!  England,  your  son  must  go  there.  Is  it  to  Australia  that 
he  is  going  ?  There  may  be  a  word  spoken  there  by  the 
blessing  of  God  to  your  son  which  is  the  only  word  which 
ever  will  reach  him.  I  cannot  speak  it  :  nobody  in  London 
can  speak  it ;  but  the  man  there  will :  and  God,  therefore, 
j  is  letting  him  go  away  in  all  his  wilfulness  and  folly  that  he 
14 


314  THE  STOKY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE. 

may  be  brought  under  the  means  of  grace,  which  will  prove 
*  effectual  to  his  salvation.  Many  a  sailor  boy  has  been  wild, 
reckless,  Godless,  Christless,  and  at  last  has  got  into  a  foreign 
hospital.  Ah,  if  his  mother  knew  that  he  was  down  with 
the  yellow  fever,  how  sad  her  mind  would  be,  for  she  would 
conclude  that  her  dear  son  will  die  away  at  Havana,  or 
somewhere,  and  never  come  home  again.  But  it  is  just  in 
that  hospital  that  God  means  to  meet  with  him.  A  sailor 
writes  to  me  something  like  that.  He  says,  "  My  mother 
asked  me  to  read  a  chapter  every  day,  but  I  never  did.  I 
got  into  the*  hospital  at  Havana,  and,  when  I  lay  there, 
there  was  a  man  near  to  me  who  was  dying,  and  he  died 
one  night ;  but  before  he  died  he  said  to  me,  '  Mate,  could 
you  come  here  ?  I  want  to  speak  to  you.  I  have  got  some- 
thing that  is  very  precious  to  me  here.  I  was  a  wild  fellow, 
but  reading  this  packet  of  sermons  has  brought  me  to  the 
Saviour,  and  I  am  dying  with  a  good  hope  through  grace. 
Now,  when  I  am  dead  and  gone,  will  you  take  these  sermons 
and  read  them,  and  may  God  bless  them  to  you.  And  will 
you  write  a  letter  to  the  man  that  preached  and  printed  those 
sermons,  to  tell  him  that  God  blessed  them  to  my  conversion, 
and  that  I  hope  he  will  bless  them  to  yourself  ?"  It  was  a 
packet  of  my  sermons,  and  God  did  bless  them  to  that  young 
man  who,  I  have  no  doubt  whatever,  went  to  that  hospital 
because  there  a  man  who  had  been  brought  to  Christ  would 
hand  to  him  the  words  which  God  had  blessed  to  himself 
and  Would  bless  to  his  friend.  You  do  not  know,  dear 
mother,  you  do  not  know.  The  worst  thing  that  can  hap- 
pen to  a  young  man  is  sometimes  the  best  thing  that  can 
happen  to  him.  I  have  sometimes  thought  when  I  have 
seen  young  men  of  position  and  wealth  taking  to  racing  and 
all  sorts  of  dissipation,  "  Well,  it  is  a  dreadfully  bad  thing, 
but  they  may  as  well  get  through  their  money  as  quickly  as 
ever  they  can,  and  then  when  they  have  got  down  to  beggary 
they  will  be  like  the  young  gentleman  in  the  parable  wiio 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE.  315 

left  his  father."  When  he  had  spent  all,  there  arose  a 
mighty  famine  in  that  land,  and  he  began  to  be  in  want, 
and  he  said,  "I  will  arise  and  go  to  my  father."  Perhaps 
the  disease  that  follows  vice — perhaps  the  poverty  that  comes 
like  an  armed  man  after  extravagance  and  debauch — is  but 
love  in  another  form,  sent  to  compel  the  sinner  to  come  to 
himself  and  consider  his  ways  and  seek  an  ever  merciful  God. 

You  Christian  people  often  see  the  little  gutter  children — 
the  poor  little  arabs  in  the  street — and  you  feel  much  pity  for 
them,  as  well  you  may.  There  is  a  dear  sister  here,  Miss  Annie 
McPherson,  who  lives  only  for  them.  God  bless  her  and  her 
work  !  When  you  see  them  you  cannot  be  glad  to  see  them 
as  they  are,  but  I  have  often  thought  that  the  poverty  and 
hunger  of  one  of  these  poor  littl%  children  has.  a  louder  voice 
to  most  hearts  than  their  vice  and  ignorance  ;  and  God  knew 
that  we  were  not  ready  and  able  to  hear  the  cry  of  the  child's 
sin,  and  so  he  added  the  child's  hunger  to  that  cry,  that  it 
might  pierce  our  hearts.  People  could  live  in  sin,  and  yet 
be  happy,  if  they  were  well-to-do  and  rich  ;  and  if  sin  did 
not  make  parents  poor  and  wretched,  and  their  children 
miserable,  we  should  not  see  it,  and  therefore  we  should  not 
arouse  ourselves  to  grapple  with  it.  It  is  a  blessing,  you 
know,  in  some  diseases  when  the  patient  can  throw  the  com- 
plaint out  upon  the  skin.  It  is  a  horrible  thing  to  see  it 
upon  the  skin,  but  still  it  is  better  than  its  being  hidden 
inside  ;  and  oftentimes  the  outward  sin  and  the  outward 
misery  are  a  sort  of  throwing  out  of  the  disease,  so  that  the 
eye  of  those  who  know  where  the  healing  medicine  is  to 
be  had  is  thereby  drawn  to  the  disease,  and  so  the  soul's 
secret  malady  is  dealt  with.  Onesimus  might  have  stopped 
at  home,  and  he  might  never  have  been  a  thief,  but  he  might 
have  been  lost  through  self-righteousness.  But  now  his  sin 
is  visible.  The  scapegrace  has  displayed  the  depravity  of  his 
heart,  and  now  it  is  that  he  comes  under  Paul's  eye  and 
Paul's  prayer,  and  becomes  converted.    Do  not,  I  pray  you, 


316  THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE. 

ever  despair  of  man  or  woman  or  child  because  you  see  their 
sin  upon  the  surface  of  their  character.  On  the  contrary, 
say  to  yourself,  "  This  is  placed  where  I  can  see  it,  that  I  may 
pray  about  it.  It  is  thrown  out  under  my  eye  that  I  may 
now  concern  myself  to  bring  this  poor  soul  to  Jesus  Christ, 
the  mighty  Saviour,  who  can  save  the  most  forlorn  sinner." 
Look  at  it  in  the  light  of  earnest,  active  benevolence,  and 
rouse,  yourselves  to  conquer  it.  Our  duty  is  to  hope  on  and 
pray  on.  It  may  be,  perhaps,  that  "  he  therefore  departed 
for  a  season,  that  thou  shouldst  receive  him  forever."  Per- 
haps the  boy  has  been  so  wayward  that  his  sin  may  come  to 
a  crisis,  and  a  new  heart  may  be  given  him.  Perhaps  your 
daughter's  evil  has  been  developed  that  now  the  Lord  may 
convince  her  of  sin  and  bring  her  to  the  Saviour's  feet.  At 
any  rate,  if  the  case  be  ever  so  bad,  hope  in  God  and  pray  on. 

III.  Once  more.  Our  text  may  be  viewed  as  an  exam- 
ple of  relations  improved.  "He  therefore  departed  for 
a  season,  that  thou  shouldst  receive  him  forever  ;  not  now  as 
a  servant,  but  a  brother  beloved,  specially  to  me,  but  how 
much  more  unto  thee?"  You  know  we  are  a  long  while 
learning  great  truths.  Perhaps  Philemon  had  not  quite 
found  out  that  it  was  wrong  for  him  to  have  a  slave.  Some 
men  who  were  very  good  in  their  time  did  not  know  it. 
John  Newton  did  not  know  that  he  was  doing  wrong  in  the 
slave  trade,  and  George  Whitfield,  when  he  left  slaves  to  the 
orphanage  at  Savannah,  which  had  been  willed  to  him,  did 
not  think  for  a  moment  that  he  was  doing  anything  more 
than  if  he  had  been  dealing  with  horses,  or  gold  and  silver. 
Public  sentiment  was  not  then  enlightened,  although  the 
gospel  has  always  struck  at  the  very  root  of  slavery.  The 
essence  of  the  gospel  is  that  we  are  to  do  to  others  as  we 
would  that  others  should  do  to  us,  and  nobody  would  wish  to 
be  another  man's  slave,  and  therefore  he  has  no  right  to  have 
another  man  as  his  slave.  Perhaps,  when  Onesimus  ran 
away  and  came  back  again,  this  letter  of  Paul  may  have 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE.  317 

opened  Philemon's  eyes  a  little  as  to  his  own  position.  No 
doubt  he  may  have  been  an  excellent  master,  and  have  trusted 
his  servant,  and  not  treated  him  as  a  slave  at  all,  but  perhaps 
he  had  not  regarded  him  as  a  brother  ;  and  now  Onesimus 
has  come  back  he  will  be  a  better  servant,  but  Philemon  will 
be  a  better  master,  and  a  slave-holder  no  longer.  He  will 
regard  his  former  servant  as  a  brother  in  Christ.  Now,  this 
is  what  the  grace  of  God  does  when  it  comes  into  a  family. 
It  does  not  alter  the  relations  ;  it  does  not  give  the  child  a 
right  to  be  pert,  and  forget  that  he  is  to  be  obedient  to  his 
parents  ;  it  does  not  give  the  father  a  right  to  lord  it  over 
his  children  without  wisdom  and  love,  for  it  tells  him  that 
he  is  not  to  provoke  his  children  to  anger,  lest  they  be  dis- 
couraged ;  it  does  not  give  the  servant  the  right  to  be  a 
master,  neither  does  it  take  away  from  the  master  his  posi- 
tion, or  allow  him  to  exaggerate  his  authority,  but  all  round 
it  softens  and  sweetens.  Eowland  Hill  used  to  say  that  he 
would  not  give  a  halfpenny  for  a  man's  piety  if  his  dog  and 
his  cat  were  not  better  off  after  he  was  converted.  There 
was  much  weight  in  that  remark.  Everything  in  the  house 
goes  better  when  grace  oils  the  wheels.  The  mistress  is, 
perhaps,  rather  sharp,  quick,  tart ;  well,  she  gets  a  little 
sugar  into  her  constitution  when  she  receives  the  grace 
of  God.  The  servant  may  be  apt  to  loiter,  be  late  up  of 
a  morning,  very  slovenly,  fond  of  gossip  at  the  door  ;  but,  if 
she  is  truly  converted,  all  that  kind  of  thing  ends.  She 
is  conscientious,  and  attends  to  her  duty  as  she  ought.  The 
master,  perhaps, — well,  he  is  the  master,  and  you  know  it. 
But  when  he  is  a  truly  Christian  man — he  has  a  gentleness, 
a  suavity,  a  considerateness  about  him.  The  husband  is  the 
head  of  the  wife,  but  when  renewed  by  grace  he  is  not  at  all 
the  head  of  the  wife  as  some  husbands  are.  The  wife  also 
keeps  her  place,  and  seeks,  by  all  gentleness  and  wisdom, 
to  make  the  house  as  happy  as  she  can.  I  do  not  believe  in 
your  religion,  dear  friend,  if  it  belongs  to  the  Tabernacle, 


318  THE  STOKY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE. 

and  the  prayer-meeting,  and  not  to  your  home.  The  best 
religion  in  the  world  is  that  which  smiles  at  the  table,  works 
at  the  sewing-machine,  and  is  amiable  in  the  drawing-room. 
Give  me  the  religion  which  blacks  boots,  and  does  them  well ; 
cooks  the  food,  and  cooks  it  so  that  it  can  be  eaten  ;  meas- 
ures out  yards  of  calico,  and  does  not  make  them  half-an- 
inch  short ;  sells  a  hundred  yards  of  an  article,  and  does  not 
label  ninety  a  hundred,  as  many  tradespeople  do.  That 
is  the  true  Christianity  which  affects  the  whole  of  life.  If 
we  are  truly  Christians  we  shall  be  changed  in  all  our  rela- 
tionships to  our  fellow-men,  and  hence  we  shall  regard  those 
whom  we  call  our  inferiors  with  quite  a  different  eye.  It  is 
wrong  in  Christian  people  when  they  are  so  sharp  upon  little 
faults  that  they  see  in  servants,  especially  if  they  are  Chris- 
tian servants.  That  is  not  the  way  to  correct  them.  They 
see  a  little  something  wrong,  and,  oh,  they  are  down  upon 
the  poor  girls,  as  if  they  had  murdered  somebody.  If  your 
Master,  and  mine,  were  to  treat  you  in  that  style,  I  wonder 
how  you  would  get  on  ?  How  quick  some  are  in  discharg- 
ing their  maids  for  small  errors.  No  excuse,  no  trying 
the  persons  again  :  they  must  go.  Many  a  young  man 
has  been  turned  out  of  a  situation  for  the  veriest  trifle,  by  a 
Christian  employer,  when  he  must  have  known  that  he 
would  be  exposed  to  all  sorts  of  risks  :  and  many  a  servant 
has  been  sent  adrift  as  if  she  were  a  dog,  with  no  sort  of 
thought  whether  another  position  could  be  found,  and  with- 
out anything  being  done  to  prevent  her  going  astray.  Do  let 
us  think  of  others,  especially  of  those  whom  Christ  loves  even 
as  he  does  us.  Philemon  might  have  said,  "  No,  no,  I  don't 
take  you  back,  Mr.  Onesimus,  not  I.  Once  bitten,  twice  shy, 
sir.  I  never  ride  a  broken-kneed  horse.  You  stole  my 
money;  I  am  not  going  to  have  you  back  again."  I  have 
heard  that  style  of  talk,  have  not  you  ?  Did  you  ever  feel 
like  it  ?  If  you  have,  go  home  and  pray  to  God  to  get  such 
a  feeling  out  of  you,  for  it  is  bad  stuff  to  have  in  your  soul. 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE.  319 

You  cannot  take  it  to  heaven.  When  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
has  forgiven  you  so  freely,  are  you  to  take  your  servant 
by  the  throat  and  say,  "Pay  me  what  thou  owest  ?"  God 
forbid  that  we  should  continue  in  such  a  temper.  Be  piti- 
ful, easily  entreated,  ready  to  forgive.  It  is  a  deal  better 
that  you  should  suffer  a  wrong  than  do  a  wrong  :  much 
better  that  you  should  overlook  a  fault  which  you  might 
have  noticed,  than  notice  a  fault  which  you  ought  to  have 
overlooked. 

"  Let  love  through  all  your  actions  ran 
And  all  your  words  be  kind," 

is  said  in  the  little  hymn  which  we  used  to  learn  when 
we  were  children.    We  should  practice  it  now,  and — 

"  Live  like  the  blessed  virgin's  son, 
That  meek  and  lowly  child." 

God  grant  we  may,  of  his  infinite  grace. 

I  want  to  say  this,  and  then  I  have  done.  If  the  myste- 
rious providence  of  God  was  to  be  seen  in  Onesimus  getting 
to  Eome,  I  wonder  whether  there  is  any  providence  of  God 
in  some  of  you  being  here  to-night  !  It  is  possible.  Such 
things  do  happen.  People  come  here  that  never  meant 
to  come.  The  last  thing  in  the- world  they  would  have 
believed  if  anybody  had  said  it,  is  that  they  would  be  here, 
yet  here  they  are.  With  all  manner  of  twists  and  turns 
they  have  gone  about,  but  they  have  got  here  somehow. 
Did  you  miss  a  train,  and  so  stepped  in  to  wait  ?  Does  not 
your  ship  sail  quite  so  soon  as  you  expected,  and  so  are 
you  here  to-night  ?  Say,  is  that  it  ?  I  do  pray  you,  then, 
consider  this  question  with  your  own  heart.  "Does  not 
God  mean  to  bless  me  ?  Has  he  not  brought  me  here  on 
purpose  that  this  night  I  may  yield  my  heart  to  Jesus  as 
Onesimus  did  ?"  My  dear  friend,  if  thou  believest  on  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  thou  shalt  have  immediate  pardon  for  all 


320  THE  STORY  OF  A  •  RUNAWAY  SLAVE. 

sin,  and  shalt  be  saved.  The  Lord  Jesus  has  brought  thee 
here  in  his  infinite  wisdom  to  hear  that,  and  I  hope  that 
he  has  also  brought  thee  here  that  thou  mayest  accept  it, 
and  so  go  thy  way  altogether  changed.  Some  three  years 
ago  I  was  talking  with  an  aged  minister,  and  he  began 
fumbling  about  in  his  waistcoat  pocket,  but  he  was  a  long 
while  before  he  found  what  he  wanted.  At  last  he  brought 
out  a  letter  that  was  well  nigh  worn  to  pieces,  and  he  said, 
"  God  Almighty  bless  you!  God  Almighty  bless  you!" 
And  I  said,  "  Friend,  what  is  it  ?"  He  said,  "  I  had  a  son. 
I  thought  he  would  be  the  stay  of  my  old  age,  but  he  dis- 
graced himself,  and  he  went  away  from  me,  and  I  could  not 
tell  where  he  went,  only  he  said  he  was  going  to  America. 
He  took  a  ticket  to  sail  for  America  from  the  London  Docks, 
but  he  did  not  go  on  the  particular  day  that  he  expected." 
This  aged  minister  bade  me  read  the  letter,  and  I  read  it,  and 
it  was  like  this  : — "  Father,  I  am  here  in  America.  I  have 
found  a  situation,  and  God  has  prospered  me.  I  write  to 
ask  your  forgiveness  for  the  thousand  wrongs  that  I  have 
done  you,  and  the  grief  I  have  caused  you,  for,  blessed  be 
God,  I  have  found  the  Saviour;  I  have  joined  the  church 
of  God  here, -and  hope  to  spend  my  life  in  God's  service. 
It  happens  thus  :  I  did  not  sail  for  America  the  day  I 
expected.  I  went  down  to  the  Tabernacle  to  see  what  it 
was  like,  and  God  met  with  me.  Mr.  Spurgeon  said,  6  Per- 
haps there  is  a  runaway  son  here.  The  Lord  call  him  by  his 
grace.'  And  he  did."  "  Now,"  said  he,  as  he  folded  up  the 
letter  and  put  it  in  his  pocket,  "  that  son  of  mine  is  dead, 
and  he  is  in  heaven,  and  I  love  you,  and  I  shall  do  so  as  long 
as  I  live,  because  you  were  the  means  of  bringing  him  to 
Christ  ? "  Is  there  a  similar  character  here  to-night  ?  I 
feel  persuaded  there  is — somebody  of  the  same  sort ;  and  in 
the  name  of  God  I  charge  him  to  take  the  warning  that 
I  give  him  from  this  pulpit.  I  dare  you  to  go  out  of  this 
place  as  you  came  in.    Oh,  young  man,  the  Lord  in  mercy 


THE  STORY  OF  A  RUNAWAY  SLAVE.  321 

gives  you  another  opportunity  of  turning  from  the  error  of 
your  ways,  and  I  pray  you  now  here — as  you  now  are — lift 
your  eye  to  heaven,  and  say,  "  God  be  merciful  to  me  a 
sinner,"  and  he  will  be  so.  Then  go  home  to  your  father 
and  tell  him  what  the  grace  of  God  has  done  for  you,  and 
wonder  at  the  love  which  brought  you  here  to  bring  you 
to  Christ. 

Dear  friend,  if  there  is  nothing  mysterious  about  it,  yet 
here  we  are.  We  are  where  the  gospel  is  preached,  and 
that  brings  responsibility  upon  us.  If  a  man  is  lost,  it  is 
better  for  him  to  be  lost  without  hearing  the  gospel,  than  to 
be  lost  as  some  of  you  will  be  if  you  perish  under  the  sound 
of  a  clear,  earnest  enunciation  of  the  gospel  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ.  How  long  halt  some  of  you  between  two 
opinions  ?  "  Have  I  been  so  long  time  with  you,"  says 
Christ,  "  and  yet  hast  thou  not  known  me  ? "  All  this 
teaching  and  preaching  and  invitation,  and  yet  dost  thou 
not  turn? 

"  O,  God  do  thou  the  sinner  turn, 
Convince  him  of  his  lost  estate." 

Let  him  linger  no  longer,  lest  he  linger  till  he  rue  his  fatal 
choice  too  late.    God  bless  you,  for  Christ's  sake.  Amen. 


SERMON  XVII. 


"LOVEST  THOU  ME  ?" 

Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan"  Tabernacle,  New- 
ington, 

"  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  lovest  thou  me  ?  " — John  xxi,  16. 

This  is  a  very  short  and  simple  text,  and  some  would 
think  it  very  easy  to  say  all  that  can  be  said  upon  it,  but  in- 
deed it  is  a  very  large  text,  and  too  full  of  meaning  for  me  to 
attempt  to  expound  it  all.  The  words  are  few,  but  the  thoughts 
suggested  are  very  many  ;  there  are  subtle  meanings,  too,  in 
the  original  Greek  well  worth  considering,  and  allusions  which 
deserve  to  be  followed  out.  I  intend  at  this  time  to  confine 
myself  to  one  point,  and  to  ask  your  consideration  of  one 
thought  only.  May  the  Spirit  of  G-od  prepare  our  hearts  for 
our  meditation,  and  impress  the  truth  upon  them.  My  one 
point  is  this  ;  our  Lord  ashed  Peter  whether  lie  had  a  love  to 
his  person.  The  inquiry  is  not  concerning  his  love  to  the 
kingdom  of  God,  or  the  people  of  God,  but  it  begins  and  ends 
with  his  love  to  the  Son  of  God.  "Simon,  son  of  Jonas, 
lovest  thourae?"  He  does  not  say,  "Dost  thou  now  per- 
ceive the  prudence  of  my  warnings  when  I  bade  thee  watch 
and  pray  ?  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  wilt  thou  henceforth  cease 
from  thy  self-confidence,  and  take  heed  to  my  admonitions  ?  " 
It  is  not  even,  "Do  you  now  believe  my  doctrines  ?  Do  you 
not  trust  in  one  whom  the  other  day  you  denied  ?"  Neither 
is  it  asked,  "  Are  you  pleased  with  my  precepts  ?   Are  you  a 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


323 


believer  in  my  claims  ?  Will  you  still  confess  me  to  be  the 
Son  of  the  Highest  ?  "  ~No,  these  matters  are  not  brought 
under  question,  but  the  one  inquiry  is,  "Lovest  thou  me? 
Hast  thou  a  personal  attachment  for  me,  to  my  very  self  ?  " 
He  calls  him  by  his  old,  unconverted  name,  Simon,  son  of 
Jonas,  to  remind  him  of  what  grace  had  done  for  him,  and 
then  he  asks  only  about  his  love.  The  question  deals  with 
personal  attachment  to  a  personal  Christ,  and  that  is  my  sole 
subject. 

Observe  that  our  ever  wise  and  tender  Saviour  questioned 
Peter  about  his  love  in  plain  set  terms.  There  was  no  beat- 
ing about  the  bush,  he  went  at  once  to  the  point,  for  it  is  not 
a  matter  about  which  ambiguity  and  doubt  can  be  endured. 
As  the  physician  feels  his  patient's  pulse  to  judge  his  heart, 
so  the  Lord  Jesus  tested  at  once  the  pulse  of  Peter's  soul. 
He  did  not  say,  "  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  dost  thou  repent  of 
thy  folly  ? "  Repentance  is  a  very  blessed  grace,  and  very 
needful,  but  it  was  wiser  to  look  at  once  to  Peters  love,  be- 
cause it  is  quite  certain  that  if  a  disciple  loves  his  master  he 
will  deeply  grieve  for  ever  having  denied  him.  The  Lord  does 
not  even  ask  his  follower  as  to  his  faith,  which  might  well 
have  been  put  under  question,  for  he  had  with  oaths  said,  "  I 
know  not  the  man."  It  would  have  been  a  highly  important 
question,  but  it  was  answered  when  Peter  avowed  his  love, 
for  he  who  loves  believes,  and  no  man  can  love  a  Saviour  in 
whom  he  does  not  believe.  The  Lord  left  every  other  point 
out  of  consideration,  or  perhaps  I  ought  rather  to  say  con- 
centrated every  other  point  into  this  one  inquiry — "Lovest 
thou  me  ?  "  Learn  from  this  fact  that  one  thing  is  needful ; 
love  to  Jesus  is  the  chief,  the  vital  point  to  look  to. 

This  question  the  Lord  asked  three  times,  as  if  to  show 
that  it  is  of  the  first,  of  the  second,  and  of  the  third  import- 
ance ;  as  if  it  comprised  all  else,  and  therefore  he  would  again, 
and  again  insist  upon  it,  as  orators  dwell  with  repetitions 
and  emphatic  sentences  upon  topics  which  they  would  urge 


324 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


home  upon  their  auditors.    This  nail  was  meant  to  be  well 

fastened,  for  it  is  smitten  on  the  head  with  blow  after  blow.  I 

With  unvarying  tone  and  look  the  Lord  enquired,  "Simon,  i 

son  of  Jonas,  lovest  thou  me  ?  "    It  shows  what  weight  our  ( 

Saviour  attached  to  the  matter  of  his  love,  that  he  asked  him  i 

about  that  about  that  only  and  about  that  three  times  over.  \ 

When  you  are  examining  yourselves  look  mainly  to  your  1 

hearts,  and  make  thorough  inquisition  into  your  love.    Is  ; 

Jesus  really  loved  by  you  ?    Have  you  a  deep  attachment  to  ! 

his  person  ?    Whatever  else  you  trifle  with,  be  earnest  here.  1 

Eemember  that  the  Lord  Jesus  himself  asked  the  ques-  i 

tion,  and  he  asked  it  until  he  grieved  Peter.    So  long  as  he  1 

was  but  recognized  as  a  disciple  Peter  must  have  felt  ready  to  i 

receive  the  severest  possible  rebuke,  and  think  himself  gently  j 

done  by ;  therefore  it  was  not  easy  to  grieve  him.    Our  Lord  t 

also  was  slow  at  all  times  to  cause  pain  to  any  true  heart ;  \ 

yet  on  this  occasion,  for  wise  reasons,  he  reiterated  his  in-  \ 

quiry  till  he  touched  Peter's  unhealed  wounds  and  made  them  { 

smart.    Had  he  not  made  his  Master's  heart  bleed,  and  was  o 

it  not  fit  that  he  should  feel  heart-wounds  himself  ?  A  three-  I 

fold  denial  demanded  a  threefold  confession,  and  the  grief  he  t] 

had  caused  was  fitly  brought  to  his  memory  by  the  grief  he  g 

felt.    Now,  this  morning,  if 'I  press  this  question  until  I  fi 

grieve  some  of  you,  till  I  grieve  myself  also,  I  shall  not  be  it 

censurable  for  having  done  so.    To  comfort  you  would  be  a  li 

good  work,  but  sometimes  it  may  be  better  to  grieve  you.  $ 

Not  always  is  sweet  food  the  best  thing  we  can  bring  you,  w 

bitter  medicine  is  sometimes  more  requisite.   I  shall  not  have  al 

pushed  the  question  beyond  its  legitimate  sphere  if  I  should  If 

so  present  it  as  to  stir  your  hearts  even  to  anguish.    True  " 

love  has  more  or  less  of  pain  about  it ;  only  the  mere  pre-  to 

tender  passes  through  the  world  without  anxious  inquiry  and  & 

heart-searching.  Better  far  that  you  should  be  grieved  to-day,  to 

and  be  found  right  at  last,  than  that  you  should  presump-  res 

tuously  feel  yourselves  secure,  and  be  deceivers  in  the  end.  | 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


325 


We  remarked  that  the  question  was  put  by  our  Lord  him- 
self. What  if  the  Lord  Jesus  should  meet  you  to-day,  and 
should  say  to  each  one  of  you,  "  Lovest  thou  me  ?"  If  the 
question  came  at  the  end  of  one  of  our  sermons,  or  just 
as  we  had  done  teaching,  I  should  not  wonder  if  it  startled 
us.  Found,  as  we  are,  in  his  house,  having  just  sung  sweet 
hymns  in  his  honor,  having  united  in  prayer,  and  heartily 
joined  in  his  worship,  it  would  seem  strange  to  be  questioned 
as  to  our  love  to  him,  and  yet  it  would  not  be  unnecessary. 
Imagine,  then,  that  your  Lord  has  -found  you  quite  alone,  * 
and  is  standing  before  you  ;  think  of  him  touching  you  with 
his  hand,  and  gently  enquiring,  "  After  all,  lovest  thou 
me  ?"  How  would  you  feel  under  such  a  question  ?  Would 
you  not  be  struck  with  it,  and  perhaps  with  shame  begin  to  . 
tremble  and  think  over  a  dozen  reasons  why  such  a  searching 
question  was  suggested  to  you  just  now.  And  if  the  Lord 
were  to  repeat  it  three  times,  and  each  time  put  it  distinctly 
£o  you,  and  to  you  only,  would  you  not  feel  great  searchings 
of  heart  ?  Yet  would  I  have  you  so  receive  the  question. 
Let  it  come  to  you  now  as  from  Jesus.  Forget  that  it  is 
spoken  by  the  minister,  or  written  in  the  text.  Hear  it  only 
as  spoken  by  Jesus,  by  that  same  Jesus  who  has  redeemed  you 
from  death  and  hell  by  his  most  precious  blood.  He  addresses 
it  to  you  rather  than  to  others, — is  there  not  a  cause  ?  Sing- 
ling you  out  of  the  company,  he  gazes  on  you  fixedly,  and 
says,  "Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  lovest  thou  me?" — you  know 
why  there  is  such  cause  to  question  you.  Answer  for  yourself 
alone,  for  he  puts  the  enquiry  only  to  you.  Never  mind 
Nathanael  now,  nor  Thomas,  nor  the  two  sons  of  Zebedee — 
"  Lovest  thou  me  ?  Really,  truly  does  thy  heart  beat  true 
toward  Jesus  of  Nazareth  ?  Come,  Peter,  yes  or  no  ?  Thou 
sayest  6  Yes,'  but  is  it  so  ?  Is  it  so  ?"  I  want  the  enquiry 
to  come  to  my  own  soul  and  to  yours  this  morning,  as  if  Jesus 
really  stood  before  each  one  of  us,  and  again  said,  "  Lovest 
thou  me  ? "    May  the  Lord  grant  us  grace  to  make  solemn 


326 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


enquiry  as  to  this  matter,  to  bear  honest  witness,  and  to  give 
a  true  deliverance,  which  shall  be  the  truth,  the  whole  truth, 
and  nothing  but  the  truth. 

I.  Our  first  observation  shall  be  this — love  to  the  per- 
son of  Christ  may  be  absent  from  our  bosoms.  Un- 
happy thought,  and  yet  most  certainly  true  !  Even  in  our 
hearts  there  may  be  no  love  to  Christ !  I  know  of  nothing 
which  can  screen  any  one  of  us  from  the  necessity  of  the 
question.  Our  gifts  and  apparent  graces  may  prevent  our 
9  fellow  creatures  questioning  us,  but  nothing  should  prevent 
our  questioning  ourselves,  for  certainly  there  is  nothing 
which  will  prevent  the  Lord  himself  from  putting  the  inquiry 
to  us. 

No  outward  religiousness  renders  the  inquiry  needless. 
Are  we  professors  of  religion,  are  we  very  constant  in  attend- 
ing to  outward  forms  of  worship  ?  Do  we  enter  very  heartily 
into  all  the  public  exercises  of  God's  house  ?  Yes,  but  there 
are  thousands  who  do  that,  hundreds  of  thousands  who  do 
that  every  Lord's-day,  and  yet  they  do  not  love  Christ !  My 
brethren,  are  not  multitudes  wrapped  up  in  forms  and  cere- 
monies ?  If  the  service  pleases  the  eye  and  the  ear,  are  they 
not  quite  content  ?  Love  to  the  person  of  Christ  has  not 
occurred  to  the  mass  of  avowed  worshippers  of  Jesus.  We 
know  others  to  whom  the  end-all  and  be-all  of  religion  is  an 
orthodox  statement  of  doctrine.  So  long  as  the  preaching  is 
according  to  the  confession  of  faith,  and  every  word  and  act 
is  piously  correct,  they  are  well  pleased  ;  but  no  love  to  Jesus 
ever  stirs  their  bosoms  ;  religion  to  them  is  not  an  exercise 
of  the  heart  at  all — it  is  mere  brain  work,  and  hardly  that. 
They  know  nothing  of  the  living  soul  going  out  toward  a 
living  person,  a  bleeding  heart  knit  to  another  bleeding  heart, 
a  life  subsisting  on  another  life  and  enamored  of  it.  We 
know  brethren  who  carry  this  very  far,  and  if  the  preacher 
differs  from  them  in  the  merest  shade,  they  are  overwhelmed 
with  pious  horror  at  his  unsoundness,  and  they  cannot  hear 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


327 


him  again :  even  if  he  preach  Christ  most  preciously  in  all 
the  rest  of  his  discourse,  it  is  nothing,  because  he  cannot 
sound  their  "  Shibboleth."  What  is  orthodoxy  without  love, 
but  a  catacomb  to  bury  religion  in.  It  is  a  cage  without  a 
bird  ;  the  gaunt  skeleton  of  a  man  out  of  which  the  life  has 
fled.  I  am  afraid  that  the  general  current  of  church  life  runs 
too  much  toward  externals,  and  too  little  toward  deep  burn- 
ing love  to  the  person  of  Christ.  If  you  preach  much  about 
emotional  religion,  and  the  heart-work  of  godliness,  cold- 
blooded professors  label  you  as  rather  mystical,  and  begin 
to  talk  of  Madame  Guyon  and  the  danger  of  the  Quietist 
school  of  religion.  We  would  not  mind  having  a  little  spice 
of  that,  even  if  we  were  blamed  for  it,  for  after  all  the  realiz- 
ing of  Christ  is  the  grand  thing.  The  faith  which  is  most 
blessed  is  faith  which  deals  most  fully  with  the  person  of 
Jesus  Christ ;  the  truest  repentance  is  that  which  weeps  at  a 
sight  of  his  wounds,  and  the  love  which  is  most  sweet  is  love 
to  the  adorable  person  of  the  Well-beloved.  I  look  upon  the 
doctrines  of  grace  as  my  Lord's  garments,  and  they  smell  of 
myrrh,  and  aloes,  and  cassia.  I  look  upon  his  precepts  as 
his  sceptre,  and  it  is  a  rod  tipped  with  silver  ;  and  I  delight 
to  touch  it  and  find  comfort  in  its  power.  I  look  upon  the 
gospel  ordinances  as  the  throne  upon  which  he  sits,  and  I 
delight  in  that  throne  of  ivory  overlaid  with  pure  gold  ;  but 
oh,  his  person  is  sweeter  than  his  garments,  dearer  than  his 
sceptre,  more  glorious  than  his  throne ;  he  himself  is  alto- 
gether lovely,  and  to  love  Him  is  the  very  heart's  core  of  true 
religion.  But  perhaps  you  may  not  love  Him  after  all.  You 
may  have  all  the  externals  of  outward  religiousness,  and  yet 
the  secret  of  the  Lord  may  not  be  with  you.  It  will  be  vain 
to  reverence  the  Sabbath  if  you  forget  the  Lord  of  the  Sab- 
bath ;  vain  to  love  the  sanctuary  but  not  the  Great  High 
Priest ;  vain  to  love  the  wedding-feast  but  not  the  Bridegroom. 
Do  you  love  Him?  that  is  the  question.  "Simon,  son  of 
Jonas,  lovest  thou  me  f  " 


! 

328  LOVEST  THOU  ME? 

Nor,  brethren,  would  the  highest  office  in  the  church  render? 
it  unnecessary  to  ask  the  question.  Peter  was  an  apostle,  aiid;| 
not  a  whit  behind  the  very  chief  of  them.  In  some  respects I 
he  was  a  foundation  stone  of  the  church,  and  yet  it  was  need^j 
ful  to  say  to  him,  "  Lovest  thou  me  ?  "  For  there  was  once< 
an  apostle  who  did  not  love  the  Lord  ;  there  was  an  apostle* 
who  coveted  twenty  pieces  of  silver, — a  goodly  price  was  that  j 
at  which  he  sold  his  Master.  The  name  of  Judas  should 
sound  the  death -knell  of  all  presumptuous  confidence  in  ou»|| 
official  standing.  We  may  stand  very  high  in  the  church  andj 
yet  fall  to  our  destruction.  Our  names  may  be  in  the  list  of 
religious  leaders  and  yet  they  may  not  be  written  in  tlam 
Lamb's  book  of  life.  So  my  brother  minister,  deacon,  of  I 
elder,  it  is  needful  to  put  to  ourselves  the  question,  "  Lovest 
thou  the  Lord  ?  " 

The  enjoyment  of  the  greatest  Christian  privileges  does  not 
render  this  question  unnecessary.  Peter  and  James  and  John 
were  the  three  most  favored  of  all  the  apostles  :  they  wit| 
nessed  certain  of  our  Lord's  miracles  which  were  done  in 
secret,  and  beheld  of  no  other  human  eyes.  They  beheld 
him  on  the  mount  of  transfiguration  in  all  his  glory,  and' 
they  saw  him  in  the  garden  of  Gethsemane  in  all  his  agony, 
and  yet  though  thus  favored,  their  Lord  felt  it  needful  to  ask 
of  their  leader  "  Lovest  thou  me?"  0  my  brother,  you  have 
had  high  enjoyments,  you  have  been  on  Tabor,  illuminated' 
with  its  transporting  light,  and  you  have  also  had  fellowship 
with  Christ  in  his  sufferings,  or  at  any  rate  you  think  you 
have.  You  are  familiar  alike  with  inward  agonies  and  spirit- 
ual joys  :  you  have  been  the  familiar  of  the  Lord  and  eaten 
bread  with  him,  and  yet  remember  there  was  one  who  did 
this  and  yet  lifted  up  his  heel  against  him,  and  therefore  it 
is  needful  to  say  to  you,  my  brother,  "Lovest  thou  th| 
Lord  ?  "  Dost  thou  really  love  him  after  all  ?  for  it  is  nof 
certain  that  thou  dost  so  because  of  what  thou  hast  seen  andj 
enjoyed.    It  is  easy  to  invent  a  remarkable  experience,  but 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


329 


the  one  thing  needful  is  a  loving  "heart.  Take  heed  that  ye 
have  this. 

Nor,  my  dear  brethren,  does  the  greatest  warmth  of  zeal 
prevent  the  necessity  of  this  question.  Peter  was  a  redhot 
disciple.  How  ready  he  was  both  to  do  and  to  dare  fcr  his 
Master.  How  impetuously  he  cried  when  he  was  on  the  lake 
of  Galilee,  "  Lord,  if  it  be  thou,  bid  me  come  to  thee  on  the 
water."  What  daring  !  What  faith  !  What  vehement  zeal ! 
And  here,  too,  in  the  narrative  before  us,  when  the  Lord  was 
by  that  selfsame  sea  of  Tiberias,  Peter,  in  his  headlong  zeal, 
cannot  wait  until  the  boat  touches  the  shore,  but  he  girds  on 
his  fisher's  coat  and  plunges  in  to  meet  the  Master  whom  be 
loves  ;  and  yet,  with  that  headlong  zeal  before  him,  the  Lord 
says,  "Lovest  thou  me  ?"  Yes,  young  man,  you  are  earn- 
est in  the  Sunday-school,  you  have  sought  the  conversion  of 
the  little  ones  and  succeeded  above  many ;  you  encourage 
others  and  give  impetus  to  every  movement  in  which  you 
engage  :  and  yet  you  need  to  enquire  whether  you  do  in  very 
deed  love  the  Lord  or  no.  Perhaps,  my  dear  brother,  you 
stand  up  in  the  corners  of  the  streets,  and  face  the  ungodly 
throng  and  delight  to  talk  of  Jesus,  whether  men  oppose  or 
no  ;  yet  are  you  sure  you  love  Jesus  ?  My  sister,  you  visit 
the  poor  and  care  for  the  needy,  you  lay  yourself  out  to  do 
good  to  young  people,  and  are  full  of  warmth  in  all  things 
which  concern  the  Redeemer's  cause.  We  admire  you,  and 
hope  your  zeal  will  never  grow  less  ;  but  for  all  that,  even  to 
you  must  the  question  be  put,  "Lovest  thou  the  Lord 
Jesus  ? "  For  there  is  a  zeal  which  is  fed  by  regard  to  the 
opinions  of  others,  and  sustained  by  a  wish  to  be  thought 
earnest  and  useful ;  there  is  a  zeal  which  is  rather  the  warmth 
of  nature  than  the  holy  fire  of  grace  :  this  zeal  has  enabled 
many  to  do  great  things,  and  yet,  when  they  have  done  all, 
they  have  been  as  sounding  brass  and  a  tinkling  cymbal,  be- 
cause they  did  not  love  Jesus  Christ.  The  most  zealous 
actions,  though  they  naturally  lead  us  to  hope  that  those  who 


330 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


perform  them  are  lovers  of  Jesus,  are  not  conclusive  evidence 
thereof,  and  therefore  we  must  still  enquire,  "  Lovest  thou 

'the JLord  ?  " 

Ay,  dear  friends,  and  I  will  go  a  little  further  ;  the  great- 
est self-denial  does  not  prove  it.  Peter  could  say,  "  Lord,  we 
have  left  all  and  followed  thee."  Though  it  was  not  very 
much,  yet  it  was  all  Peter  had,  and  he  had  left  it  all  for  the 
good  cause,  without  having  gained  any  earthly  good  in  return. 
He  had  been  frequently  abused  and  reproached,  for  Jesus' 
sake,  and  he  expected  to  be  reproached  still  more,  yet  was 
he  loyal,  and  willing  to  suffer  to  the  end  :  yet  the  Lord, 
knowing  all  that  Peter  had  sacrificed  for  his  sake,  neverthe- 
less said  to  him,  ' '  Lovest  thou  me  ?"  For  sadly,  strangely 
true  it  is,  that  men  have  made  considerable  sacrifices  to  be- 
come professed  Christians,  and  yet  have  not  had  the  root  of 
the  matter  in  them.  Some  have  even  been  put  into  prison 
for  the  truth,  and  yet  have  not  been  sincere  Christians,  and 
it  is  not  for  us  to  say,  but  it  is  to  be  feared  that  in  the  martyr 
days  some  have  given  their  bodies  to  be  burned,  yet  because 
they  had  not  love,  it  profited  them  nothing.  Love  is  essen- 
tial. Nothing  can  compensate  for  its  absence.  And  yet  this 
precious  thing  may  not  be  in  your  hearts  !  0  God,  I  trem- 
ble as  I  remember  that  perhaps  it  is  not  in  mine.  Let  each 
one  hear  the  question  "  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  lovest  thou 
me  ?" 

\  must  press  the  point  still  a  little  further.  It  is  often 
necessary  for  us  to  put  this  question,  because  there  are  other 
points  of  religion  besides  the  emotional.  Man  is  not  all  heart, 
be  has  a  brain,  and  the  brain  is  to  be  consecrated  and  sancti- 
fied. It  is  therefore,  right  that  we  should  study  the  Word 
of  God  and  become  well  instructed  scribes  in  the  kingdom  of 
heaven.  Peter  went  to  college  three  years,  with  Jesus  Christ 
for  a  tutor,  and  he  learned  a  great  deal,  as  who  would  not 
from  so  great  a  teacher  ?  But  after  he  had  been  through  his 
course,  his  Master,  before  he  sent  him  to  his  life-work,  felt  it 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


331 


needful  to  inquire,  "  Lovest  thou  me  ? "  Brother,  you  may 
turn  over  the  pages  of  your  book,  you  may  digest  doctrine 
after  doctrine,  you  may  take  up  theological  propositions  and 
problems,  and  you  may  labor  to  solve  this  difficulty  and  ex- 
pound that  text,  and  meet  the  other  question,  till,  somehow 
or  other,  the  heart  grows  as  dry  as  the  leaves  of  the  volume, 
and  the  book-worm  feeds  on  the  soul  as  well  as  the  paper, 
eating  its  way  into  the  spirit.  It  is,  therefore,  a  healthy 
thing  for  the  Lord  to  come  into  the  study  and  close  the  book, 
and  say  to  the  student,  "Sit  still  a  while,  and  let  me  ask 
thee,  4 Lovest  thou  me?'  I  am  better  than  all  books  and 
studies ;  hast  thou  a  warm,  human,  living  love  to  me  ? "  I 
hope  many  of  you  are  very  diligent  students — if  you  teach  in 
the  Sunday-school  you  ought  to  be,  if  you  preach  in  the 
streets  or  in  cottage  meetings  you  ought  to  be.  How  shall 
you  fill  others  if  you  are  not  full  yourselves  ?  But  at  the 
same  time  look  most  of  all  to  the  condition  of  your  heart  to- 
ward Christ.  To  know  is  good,  but  to  love  is  better.  If 
thou  wilt  study  thou  canst  solve  all  problems ;  yet-  if  thou 
lovest  not,  thou  hast  failed  to  comprehend  the  mystery  of 
mysteries,  and  to  know  the  most  excellent  of  sciences. 
Knowledge  puffeth  up,  but  love  buildeth  up.  Look  well, 
then,  to  the  question,  "Lovest  thou  me  ?"  Much  of  Chris- 
tian life  also  ought  to  be  spent  in  active  labor.  We  are  to  be 
up  and  doing.  If  there  was  anything  to  do,  Peter  was  the 
man  to  do  it.  He  had  gone  forth  to  preach  the  gospel,  and 
even  the  devils  had  been  subject  to  him  ;  Peter  had  wrought 
marvels  in  Jesus'  name,  and  he  was  ordained  to  work  yet 
greater  wonders.  Yet,  despite  all  that  Peter  had  done,  his 
love  needed  to  be  examined.  Even  though  those  feet  of 
Peter's  had  walked  the  sea,  which  no  man's  feet  had  done 
besides,  yet  Peter  must  be  asked,  "  Lovest  thou  me  ? "  He 
iiad  just  dragged  that  huge  net  to  the  shore  with  that  host 
of  fishes,  a  hundred  and  fifty  and  three.  With  great  skill 
and  mighty  efiort  he  had  drawn  the  whole  shoal  on  shore, 


332 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


yet  this  did  not  prove  his  love.  There  are  preachers  of  the 
gospel  among  us  who  have  dragged  a  full  net  to  shore,  the 
great  fishes  have  been  many  ;  they  have  been  great  and  suc- 
cessful workers,'  but  this  does  not  prevent  its  being  needful 
for  the  Lord  to  examine  them  as  to  their  hearts.  He  bids 
them  put  by  their  nets  for  awhile  and  commune  with  him. 
Shut  up  the  church  book  ;  fold  up  the  roll  of  membership 
and  have  done  counting  your  fishes.  Come  into  your  cham- 
ber apart.  Jesus  means  to  ask  you  something.  "  In  my 
name  you  have  cast  out  devils,  but  did  you  love  me  ?  You 
cast  the  net  on  the  right  side  of  the  ship,  as  I  told  you,  but 
did  you  love  me  ?  You  drew  to  shore  that  shoal  of  fishes, 
but  did  you  love  me  ? "  Brethren,  this  is  the  solemn  fear, 
"  Lest  after  having  preached  to  others  I  myself  should  be  a 
castaway."  Lest  after  bringing  others  to  Jesus,  and  serving 
God  well  in  the  school,  or  in  some  other  sphere,  you  should, 
nevertheless,  make  a  dead  failure  of  it,  because  you  have  not 
loved  Jesus  himself.  I  must  press  the  question  again  and 
again,  and  I  do  pray  the  Holy  Spirit  to  let  its  power  be  felt 
by  every  one  of  us. 

Possibly  we  may  have  been  called  to  contend  earnestly 
for  the  faith,  and  we  may  have  been  battling  with  the  King's 
enemies  on  this  side  and  on  that,  and  standing  up  for  the 
truth  even  as  for  dear  life.  It  is  well  to  be  a  good  soldier  of 
Jesus  Christ,  for  this  age  wants  men  who  are  not  afraid  to 
bear  reproach  for  speaking  out  the  truth,  with  strong,  stern 
words  ;  but  to  this  spirit  it  is  more  than  ever  important  that 
the  question  should  come,  " Lovest  thou  me?"  A  man  may 
be  a  very  firm  Protestant,  but  may  not  love  Christ;  he  may 
be  a  very  earnest  advocate  of  divine  truth,  but  he  may  not 
love  him  who  is  the  truth  itself ;  he  may  maintain  Scriptural 
views  as  to  baptism,  and  yet  he  may  never  have  been  baptized 
into  Christ.  A  man  may  be  a  staunch  Nonconformist,  and 
may  see  all  the  evils  against  which  Nonconformity  is  a  pro- 
test, but  still  he  may  be  conformed  to  the  world,  and  be  lost 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


333 


notwithstanding  all  his  dissent.  It  is  a  grand  thing  for  every 
Christian  warrior  to  look  well  to  this  breastplate,  and  to  see 
l that  he  can  promptly  reply  to  the  question,  "  Simon,  son  of 
Jonas,  lovest  thou  me  ?" 

Putting  all  together,  let  me  say  to  yon, — Beloved,  how- 
ever eminent  you  may  be  in  the  church  of  God,  and  however 
distinguished  for  services  or  for  suffering,  yet  do  not  evade 
this  question.  Bare  your  bosoms  to  the  inspection  of  your 
Lord.  Answer  him  with  humble  boldness  while  he  says  to 
you  again  and  again,  even  till  he  grieves  you,  "  Simon,  son 
of  Jonas,  lovest  thou  me  ?  " 

II.  We  will  now  turn  to  a  second  head.    TVe  must  love 

THE  PERSON  OF  CHRIST,  OR  ALL  OUR  PAST  PROFESSIONS  HAVE 

been  A  lie.  It  is  not  possible  for  that  man  to  be  a  Chris- 
tian wTho  does  not  love  Christ.  Take  the  heart  away,  and 
life  is  impossible.  Your  very  first  true  hope  of  heaven  came 
to  you,  if  it  ever  did  come  at  all,  by  Jesus  Christ.  Beloved, 
you  heard  the  gospel,  but  the  gospel  apart  from  Christ  was 
never  good  news  to  you  ;  you  read  the  Bible,  but  the  Bible 
apart  from  a  personal  Christ  was  never  anything  more  than  a 
dead  letter  to  you  ;  you  listened  to  many  earnest  entreaties, 
but  they  all  fell  on  a  deaf  ear  until  Jesus  came  and  compelled 
you  to  come  in.  The  first  gleam  of  comfort  that  ever  entered 
my  heart  flashed  from  the  wounds  of  the  Redeemer  ;  I  never 
had  a  hope  of  being  saved  until  I  saw  him  hanging  on  the 
tree  in  agonies  and  blood.  And  because  our  earliest  hope 
is  bound  up,  not  with  any  doctrine  or  preacher,  but  with 
Jesus,  our  all  in  all,  therefore  I  am  sure,  even  if  we  have  only 
lately  received  our  first  hope,  we  must  love  Jesus,  from  whom 
it  has  come.  Nor  do  we  merely  begin  with  him,  for  every 
covenant  blessing  we  have  received  has  been  connected  with 
his  person,  and  could  not  be  received  apart  from  him.  You 
have  obtained  pardon,  but  that  pardon  was  through  his 
blood.  You  have  been  clothed  in  righteousness,  but  he  is  the 
Lord  your  Righteousness,  he  is  himself  your  glory  and  your 


334 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


beauty.  You  have  been  cleansed  from  many  sins  by  conver- 
sion, but  it  was  the  water  from  his  riven  side  which  washed 
you.  You  have  been  made  the  child  of  God,  but  your  adop- 
tion has  only  made  you  feel  more  akin  to  the  Elder  Brother, 
through  whom  you  are  made  heirs  of  God.  The  blessings  of 
the  covenant  are  none  of  them  separate  from  Christ,  and  can- 
not be  enjoyed  apart  from  him,  any  more  than  light  and  heat 
can  be  divided  from  the  sun.  All  blessings  come  to  us  from 
his  pierced  hand,  and  hence  if  we  have  received  them  we 
must  love  him  ;  it  is  not  possible  to  have  enjoyed  the  golden 
gifts  of  his  unbounded  love  without  being  moved  to  love  him 
in  return.  You  cannot  walk  in  the  sun  without  being 
warmed,  nor  receive  of  Christ's  fulness  without  being  filled 
with  gratitude. 

Every  ordinance  of  the  Christian  church  since  we  have 
been  converted  has  either  been  a  mockery,  or  else  we  have 
loved  Christ  in  it.  Baptism,  for  instance,  what  is  it  but  the 
mere  washing  away  of  the  filth  of  the  flesh  and  nothing  more, 
unless  we  were  buried  with  Christ  in  baptism  unto  death  ;  thai 
like  as  he  also  rose  from  the  dead  by  the  glory  of  the  Father 
even  so  we  also  might  rise  to  newness  of  life  ?  The  Lord's 
Supper,  what  is  it  ?  What  but  a  common  meal  for  the  eat- 
ing of  bread  and  the  drinking  of  wine,  unless  Christ  be  there  ? 
But  if  we  have  come  to  the  Lord's  Supper  as  true  men,  anc 
not  as  false-hearted  hypocrites,  we  have  eaten  his  flesh  anc 
drunk  his  blood,  and  is  it  possible  to  have  done  that  and  not 
to  love  him  ?  It  cannot  be.  That  communion  with  Christ 
which  is  absolutely  esseutial  to  ordinances  is  also  sure  to  pro- 
duce in  the  heart  love  toward  him  with  whom  we  commune. 
And  so,  beloved,  it  has  been  with  every  approach  we  have 
made  toward  God  in  all  the  long  years  of  our  Christain  life. 
Did  you  pray,  my  brother  ?  did  you  really  speak  with  God 
in  prayer  ?  You  could  not  have  done  it  except  through  Jesus 
the  Mediator,  and  if  you  have  spoken  to  God  through  the 
Mediator,  you  cannot  remain  without  love  to  one  who  has 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


335 


been  your  door  of  access  to  the  Father.  If  you  have  made  a 
profession  of  religion,  how  can  it  be  a  true  and  honest  one 
unless  your  heart  burns  with  attachment  to  the  Great  Author 
of  salvation  ?  You  have  great  hopes,  but  what  are  you  hoping 
for  ?  Is  not  all  your  hope  wrapped  up  in  him  ?  Do  you 
not  expect  that  when  he  shall  appear  you  shall  be  like  him  ? 
You  are  hoping  to  die  triumphantly,  but  not  apart  from  his 
making  your  dying  bed  soft  as  a  pillow  of  dawn.  You  are 
hoping  to  rise  again,  but  not  apart  from  his  resurrection,  for 
he  is  the  first  frnit  of  the  resurrection  harvest.  You  expect 
to  reign  upon  earth,  but  it  is  with  Mm  ;  you  do  not  expect  a 
millennium  apart  from  the  King.  You  expect  a  never-end- 
ing heaven,  but  that  heaven  is  to  be  with  Jesus  where  he  is, 
and  to  behold  his  glory.  Since,  then,  everything  that  you 
have  obtained — if  indeed  you  have  received  it  of  the  Lord  at 
all — has  Christ's  name  stamped  on  it,  and  comes  to  you  direct 
from  his  pierced  hand,  it  cannot  be  that  you  have  received 
it  unless  you  love  him.  Now,  when  I  put  the  question,  re- 
collect that  upon  your  answer  to  it  hangs  this  alternative — a 
hypocrite  or  a  true  man,  a  false  professor  or  a  genuine  con- 
vert, a  child  of  God  or  an  heir  of  wrath.  Therefore  answer 
the  inquiry,  but  answer  it  with  deliberation,  answer  it  con- 
scientiously, as  though  you  stood  before  the  bar  of  him  who 
now  so  tenderly  enquires  of  you,  but  who  will  then  speak  in 
other  tones,  and  look  with  other  glances,  even  with  those  eyes 
which  are  like  a  flame  of  fire.  "  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  lovest 
thou  me  ? 

III.  Our  third  consideration  is  this — we  must  have  love 

TO  THE  PERSON  OF  CHRIST.  OR  KOTHIl^G  IS  RIGHT  FOR  THE 

future.  We  have  not  finished  life  yet — much  of  pilgrimage 
may  possibly  lie  before  us.  JSTow,  all  will  go  right  if  we  love 
Christ,  but  nothing  can  proceed  as  it  should  do  if  love  to  Jesus 
be  absent.  For  instance :  Peter  is  called  to  feed  the  lambs  and 
feed  the  sheep  ;  but  for  a  true  pastor  the  first  qualification  is 
love  to  Christ.    I  gather  from  this  incident,  and  I  am  sure 


336 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


I  do  not  press  it  unduly,  that  Jesus  Christ,  meaning  to  make 
Peter  a  feeder  of  his  lambs  and  sheep,  acts  as  a  trier  to  see 
whether  he  has  the  proper  qualifications,  and  he  does  not  so 
much  inquire  about  Peter's  knowledge  of  gifts  of  utterance,  as 
about  his  love  ;  for  the  first,  second,  and  third  qualification  for 
a  true  pastor  is  a  loving  heart.  Now,  mark  you,  what  is  true 
of  a  pastor  is  true  of  every  useful  worker  for  Christ.  Love  is 
essential,  my  d«ar  friend  ;  you  cannot  work  for  Christ  if  you 
do  not  love  him.  "  But  I  can  teach  in  the  school,"  says  one. 
"  No,  not  as  school  should  be  taught,  without  love  to  Jesus." 
"  But  I  am  connected  with  an  interesting  society,  which  is 
doing  much  good."  "  But  you  are  not  glorifying  Cod  unless 
you  are  connected  with  that  society  because  you  love  Jesus 
Christ."  Put  down  your  tools,  for  you  cannot  work  profit- 
ably in  my  Lord's  vineyard  unless  your  heart  loves  him  :  his 
vines  had  better  be  untrimmed  than  be  pruned  by  angry 
hands.  Let  the  lambs  alone,  sir,  you  will  never  rear  them 
if  your  heart  is  hard  and  ungentle.  If  you  do  not  love  the 
Master,  you  will  not  love  his  work,  or  his  servants,  or  the 
rules  of  his  house,  and  we  can  do  better  without  you  than 
with  you.  To  have  an  unloving  worker  grumbling  about  the 
Lord's  house  and  vineyard  would  be  distressing  to  the  whole 
family.  Love  must  be  in  the  heart,  or  true  service  cannot 
come  from  the  hands. 

Then,  again,  perhaps  suffering  lies  before  you :  and  if 
your  heart  is  not  true  to  Christ,  you  will  not  be  able  patiently 
to  endure  for  his  name's  sake.  Before  long,  the  time  came 
for  Peter  to  glorify  God  by  death.  Peter  has  to  be  girded 
and  to  be  taken  whither  he  would  not.  Now  Peter  can- 
not be  fit  for  martyrdom  if  he  does  not  love  Jesus.  Tradi- 
tion says  that  he  was  crucified  with  his  head  downward, 
because  he  felt  it  too  much  honor  to  be  put  to  death  in  the 
same  position  as  his  Lord.  It  may  be  so  ;  no  doubt  he  was 
put  to  death  by  crucifixion,  and  it  was  his  strong  deep  love 
which  made  him  more  than  a  conqueror.    Love  makes  the 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


337 


hero.  When  the  Spirit  of  -God  inflames  love  he  inspires 
courage.  See  then,  0  believers,  how  much  you  need  love  for 
the  future.  Young  Christian,  you  will  have  to  run  the 
gauntlet  before  you  enter  heaven.  I  do  not  mind  what  sphere 
of  life  you  occupy,  you  are  very  particularly  favored  if  some- 
body does  not  mock  at  you,  and  persecute  you.  Between 
here  and  heaven  you  will  be  tried,  and  peradventure  your 
foes  will  be  the  men  of  your  own  household.  Many  will 
watch  for  your  halting,  and  even  place  stumbling-blocks  in 
your  way  :  to  walk  securely  you  will  need  to  carry  the  fires 
of  love  in  your  heart.  If  you  do  not  love  Jesus  intensely  sin 
will  get  the  mastery  over  you.  Self-denials  and  humiliations 
which  would  be  easy  with  love  will  be  impossible  without  it. 
Rightly  to  work  or  to  suffer,  or  to  die,  we  must  love  Jesus 
with  all  our  hearts. 

Look  you,  my  brethren,  if-  we  have  no  love  for  Jesus 
Christ's  person  our  piety  lacks  the  adhesive  element,  it  fails  in 
that  which  will  help  us  to  stick  to  the  good  old  way  to  the 
end,  and  hold  oat  to  the  end.  Men  often  leave  what  they 
like  ;  men  can  deny  what  they  merely  believe  as  a  matter  of 
mental  conviction,  but  they  will  never  deny  that  which  they 
feel  to  be  true,  and  accept  with  heartfelt  affection.  If  you 
are  to  persevere  to  the  end,  it  must  be  in  the  power  of  love. 

Love  is  the  great  inspiriting  force.  Many  a  deed  in  the 
Christian  life  is  impossible  to  every  thing  but  love.  In  serv- 
ing Christ  you  come  across  a  difficulty  far  too  great  for  judg- 
ment, far  too  hard  for  prudence,  and  unbelief  sits  down  and 
weighs  and  calculates,  but  love,  mighty  love,  laughs  at  the 
impossibility  and  accomplishes  it  for  Jesus  Christ.  Love 
breaks  through  troops,  love  leaps  over  walls,  and  hand-in- 
hand  with  faith  she  is  all  but  omnipotent ;  nay,  through  the 
power  of  God  which  is  upon  her,  she  can  do  all  things  for 
Jesus  Christ  her  Lord.  If  you  lack  love  your  energy  is 
gone  ;  the  force  which  nerves  the  man  and  subdues  his  foes  is 
lacking. 

15 


338 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


Without  love,  too,  yon  are  without  the  transforming  force. .  lo 
Love  to  Christ  is  that  which  makes  us  like  him.  The  eyes  tl 
of  love,  like  windows,  let  in  the  Saviour's  image,  and  thei  Bi 
heart  of  love  receives  it  as  upon  a  sensitive  plate,  until  the  da 
whole  nature  bears  its  impress.  You  are  like  that  which  you  jo 
love,  or  you  are  growing  like  it.  If  Christ  be  loved  you  are  go 
growingly  becoming  like  him ;  but  without  love  you  will  jo 
never  bear  the  image  of  the  heavenly.  0.  Spirit  of  God,  withj  in; 
wings  of  love  brood  over  us,  till  Christ  is  formed  in  us.  h 

My  brethren,  there  is  one  other  reflection — without  love  A 
to  Christ  we  lack  the  perfecting  element.  We  are  to  be  with  j  01 
him  soon ;  in  a  few  more  weeks  or  months,  none  of  us  can  i  to 
tell  how  few,  we  shall  be  in  the  glory.  Yes,  you  and  I ;  j  to 
many  of  us  shall  be  wearing  the  white  robes  and  bearing  the  '  mi 
palm  branches.  We  shall  only  buy  two  or  three  more  alma-  ft 
nacs,  at  the  outside,  and  then  we  shall  keep  no  more  reckon-  yo 
ing  of  days,  for  we  shall  be  where  time,  with  its  little  eddies  all 
and  currents,  shall  be  forgotten  in  the  eternal  flow  of  the  jo 
ages.  But  if  we  have  not  love  to  Jesus  we  shall  not  be  where  j  a 
he  is.  There  are  none  in  heaven  that  have  not  first  learned  !  fa 
to  love  him  here  below.  So  we  must  have  love  to  Jesus,  the  ha 
future  imperiously  demands  it,  and  therefore  I  put  the  clu 
question  with  all  the  greater  seriousness  and  vehemence, ,  tin 
"  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  lovest  thou  me  ?  "  ser 

IV.  But  now  I  will  suppose  I  have  received  an  answer  foi 
from  yon,  and  you  are  able  to  say  you  do  love  Jesus  ;  then  If 
my  fourth  and  closing  head  must  be,  if  we  do  love  him,  tal 
what  then  ?  Why  then,  if  we  do  love  him,  let  us  do  some-  fa 
thing  for  him  directly,  for  Jesus  Christ  replied  to  Peter  the  net 
moment  he  said,  "  Thou  knowest  all  things,  thou  knowest  am 
that  I  love  thee," — "  Feed  my  sheep."  Very  kind  it  was  of  the 
the  Saviour,  because  he  knew  from  his  own  heart  that  wher-  fti 
ever  there  is  love  there  is  a  desire  for  activity.  Because  Jesus  tic 
loved  so  much  therefore  it  became  his  meat  and  his  drink  to  tji 
do  the  will  of  his  heavenly  Father.   So  thinks  Jesus — "  Peter  \  ^ 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


339 


loves  me,  and  his  heart  will  ache  if  I  do  not  give  him  some- 
thing to  do.  Go  and  feed  my  lambs,  go  and  feed  my  sheep." 
Brother,  sister,  if  you  love  Christ,  do  not  idle  away  this  Sun- 
day afternoon.  If  you  love  Christ,  get  to  work.  What  are 
you  doing  ?  Attending  the  means  of  grace  and  getting  a 
good  feed.  Is  that  all  ?  Well,  that  is  doing  something  for 
yourself.  Many  people  in  the  world  are  very  busy  at  feed- 
ing, among  the  most  active  with  knife  and  fork,  but  I  do  not 
know  that  eating  a  man's  bread  is  any  proof  of  love  to  him. 
A  great  many  professing  Christians  give  no  proof  of  love  to 
Christ,  except  that  they  enjoy  sermons.  But  now,  if  you 
love  Jesus  Christ  as  you  say  you  do,  prove  it  by  doing  good 
to  others — "Feed  my  sheep."  I  see  a  company  of  brethren 
met  together  to  hold  a  conference  and  to  grow  in  grace. 
Very  excellent  indeed  :  grow  away,  brethren,  as  fast  as  ever 
you  can — I  like  to  see  you  as  a  flower  garden,  all  a-growing, 
all  a-blowing.  But  when  you  have  done  all  that,  I  pray 
you  do  not  congratulate  yourselves  as  though  you  had  done 
a  mighty  fine  thing,  because  there  is  nothing  in  it  unless  it 
leads  you  to  work  for  others.  To  publish  accounts  of  such 
happy  gatherings  is  like  telling  the  poor  people  of  White- 
chapei  that  the  Mayor  and  Aldermen  had  a  fine  banquet  of 
turtle  soup.  Suppose  I  read  that  you  have  had  a  splendid 
series  of  meetings  ;  well,  I  am  glad  you  enjoyed  yourselves  ; 
but  the  point  is  this — if  there  is  anything  in  it,  get  to  work. 
If  you  love  Christ,  feed  his  sheep  and  lambs.  If  it  is  not  alL 
talk,  if  it  is  not  all  much  ado  about  nothing,  if  it  is  not  all 
fuss,  get  to  soul  winning,  get  down  among  the  poor  and 
needy,  get  down  among  the  lost  and  wandering,  get  down 
among  the  dark  and  ignorant,  and  hold  forth  Jesus  Christ  as 
the  Balm  of  Gilead  and  the  Saviour  of  sinners.  After  all, 
this  is  the  test  of  how  much  you  have  grown  in  grace — this  is 
the  proof  of  how  much  you  have  become  like  Jesus.  What 
will  you  do  for  him  ?  for  if  you  do  not  go  now  and  feed  his 
sheep,  and  feed  his  lambs,  it  does  not  matter  what  you  say 


340 


LOVEST  THOU  ME? 


or  what  you  think  you  enjoy,  you  do  not  give  that  proof  of 
love  which  Jesus  asks  for. 

I  put  it  in  this  final  word  ; — when  next  you  teach  your 
classes,  or  your  own  families,  do  it  for  love  of  Jesus.    Say  to 
your  heart,  "I  do  love  Christ,  and  now  I  am  going  to  teach 
for  love  of  him."    Oh,  there  will  be  a  grand  class  this  after- 
noon, my  sister,  you  will  get  on  mightily  if  you  teach  for  love 
of  him,  every  word  you  say  will  be  powerful  since  it  is  sug- : 
gested  by  love  of  him.    That  girl  who  makes  so  much  noise, 
and  troubles  you  so  much,  you  will  bear  with  for  love  of  him. 
That  restless  young  urchin,  you  cannot  get  the  truth  into  ' 
him, — you  tell  him  many  tales,  and  when  you  have  done  he  j 
wants  another  ;  you  will  patiently  give  him  another,  for  the 
love  of  Christ.    When  you  pray  with  the  little  ones,  pray ! 
because  you  love  them  for  Christ's  sake.    You  are  going  to 
preach,  do  the  preaching  for  love  of  Christ.    We  sometimes  8 
do  it  because  it  is  our  turn  to  do  it,  but  it  should  never  be i  1 
so.    You  know  how  delightfully  servants  will  wait  upon  you  j  8 
if  they  do  it  for  love.    You  have  been  out  for  a  few  weeks, j  1 
and  at  last  you  come  home.    Look  at  the  room  !    What  a  ]' 
welcome  is  before  you  !  They  have  half  devastated  the  garden'  1 
to  bring  in  the  flowers  to  make  the  table  look  nice  for  you.  i 
That  supper — well,  it  is  just  the  same  supper  that  any  Mary*  ei 
or  Jane  would  have  cooked,  but  see  how  it  is  put  upon  the  I 
table  !    Everything  seems  to  say  it  is  done  for  love  of  master  H 
and  mistress,  to  show  our  affection  and  respect  for  them,  and  i 
you  enjoy  it  indescribably,  because  it  tells  of  love.    Now,  to-  ot 
morrow,  and  as  long  as  ever  you  live,  do  everything  out  of  k 
love  to  Christ.    It  will  spread  flowers  over  your  work,  and  ( 
make  it  look  beautiful  in  his  eyes.    Put  love's  fingers  to  work,  jc 
love's  drains,  love's  eyes,  love's  hands  ;  think  with  love,  pray  ]  If 
with  love,  speak  with  love,  live  with  love,  and  in  this  way  te 
you  will  live  with  power,  and  God  will  bless  you  for  Jesus'  tl 
sake.    Amen.  co 

li 


SERMON  XVIII. 


MY  GOD. 

Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 
ington. 

"  My  God." — Psalm  xci.  2. 

If  you  were  to  find  honey  in  a  wood,  and  should  wish  to 
give  some  of  it  to  your  friends,  I  can  imagine  your  cautiously 
taking  it  up  in  your  hands,  and  carrying  it  very  carefully, 
and  yet  when  you  reach  the  company  you  would  find,  to 
your  sorrow,  that  a  large  part  of  it  had  oozed  out  between 
your  fingers,  so  that  you  had  failed  to  convey  to  others  what 
was  so  delicious  to  yourself.  I  fear  I  shall  be  iu  a  like  condi- 
tion when  this  sermon  is  done,  and  therefore  I  am  the  more 
eager  to  assure  you  at  the  beginning  that  the  honey  which 
I  wish  you  to  partake  of  is  indeed  of  the  very  richest  kind. 
My  text  has  been  to  my  own  heart  sweeter  than  honey  and 
the  honey-comb.  Have  you  been  in  the  Alps,  or  in  some 
other  region  where  the  scenery  is  peculiarly  impressive,  and 
has  there  happened  a  singular  conjunction  of  sun  and  cloud, 
of  brightness  and  shadow,  which  has  made  the  view  before 
you  to  be  transcendantly  sublime,  or  surpassingly  beautiful  ? 
If  so,  when  you  have  reached  your  companions  you  have 
tried  to  tell  them  what  you  have  seen  :  but  in  proportion  as 
the  scene  has  been  exquisite  and  charming,  you  have  been 
conscious  of  your  inability  to  convey  to  them  any  satisfactory 
idea  of  the  spectacle.    If  it  had  been  a  commonplace  affair 


342 


MY  GOD. 


you  could  have  accomplished  the  description  and  conveyed 
your  impression  of  it  to  other  minds  ;  but  on  account  of  its 
being  so  altogether  superior  and  out  of  the  common  way, 
you  have  failed  after  the  most  earnest  endeavors  to  succeed, 
you  have  exclaimed,  u  Ah,  you  should  have  been  there  your- 
selves. Had  you  seen  with  your  own  eyes  you  would  then 
have  understood  my  descriptions :  but  now  the  task  of 
description  is  hopeless.  Had  you  been  there  you  would 
have  known  that  I  do  not  exaggerate  ;  on  the  contrary,  you 
would  have  felt  that  when  I  have  spoken  under  the  greatest 
excitement  I  have  fallen  far  short  of  the  admiration  which 
the  scene  awakens."  It  happens  to  me  in  happy  hours  that 
a  text  of  Scripture  becomes  peculiarly  delicious  to  my  heart, 
even  as  marrow  and  fatness  to  the  feaster  ;  and  these  two 
words  have  been  so.  They  filled  my  spirit  with  sweetness 
even  to  the  full ;  but  I  fear  that  I  cannot  convey  that  sweet- 
ness to  you.  I  have  seen  in  these  two  words  such  a  wonder- 
ful display  of  divine  condescension,  of  the  Lord's  favor 
to  his  chosen,  and  of  the  intense  delight  which  springs  out  of 
that  condescension  and  favor,  that  had  I  but  been  in  the] 
pulpit  at  the  time  I  could  have  preached  with  freedom,  but 
now  I  do  not  find  it  so  easy  :  expression  limps  to-day  where 
enjoyment  leaped  yesterday.  However,  may  God  the  Holy 
Spirit  help  you  to  see  in  the  text  what  I  have  seen  in  it,  even 
if  I  cannot  point  it  out  to  you,  and  then  our  meditation  will 
be  remarkably  delightful  and  pleasant  to  us.  May  the  Spirit 
of  God  bring  fulness  of  meaning  out  of  the  text  to  your 
understandings  and  to  your  hearts  ;  and  may  we  all  rejoice 
together  as  we  go  out  of  this  Tabernacle,  each  one  of  us  say- 
ing "  The  Lord  is  my  portion,  saith  my  soul." 

I.  First  let  us  think  of  these  two  words  together. 
And  to  get  at  them  let  us  see  when  they  have  occurred  in 
sacred  history  : — let  us  consider  the  most  remarkable  and 
special  occasions  upon  which  children  of  God  have  used 
these  two  words  together,  and  have  said  "  My  God." 


MY  GOD. 


343 


First,  this  is  the  young  converts  early  confession.  The 
instance  we  will  give  is  Kuth,  who  lovingly  said  to  Naomi, 
<e  Where  thou  dwellest  I  will  dwell  :  where  thou  goest  I  will 
go  :  where  thou  lodgest  I  will  lodge  :  thy  people  shall  be  my 
people,  and  thy  God  my  God."  That  last  resolution  was  the 
avowal  of  a  spiritual  change.  She  might*have  been  deter- 
mined to  lodge,  and  to  abide  with  her  mother-in-law,  and 
there  would  have  been  but  little  in  it ;  but  when  it  came  to 
this — "  Thy  God  shall  be  my  God,"  then  there  was  hope, 
that  she  had  been  delivered  by  the  grace  of  God  from  the 
bondage  of  idolatry,  and  had  come  to  put  her  trust  under  the 
wings  of  Jehovah,  the  living  God.  Ah,  dear  young  converts, 
if  the  Lord  has  revealed  your  sinful  estate  to  you,  and  has 
led  you  to  Jesus  Christ  to  find  life  and  salvation,  you  will 
come  forward  and  give  yourself  to  the  Lord,  and  declare,  "  I 
will  be  thy  servant,  for  thou  art  my  God." 

"  Lord,  thou  art  mine,  forever  mine, 
My  heart  is  filled  with  j  oy  divine  ; 
Henceforth  thou  shalt  my  treasure  be, 
And  I  will  find  my  all  in  thee." 

You  will  next  give  yourself  to  the  church  according  to  the 
will  of  God,  and  you  will  tell  the  church  that  you  do  so 
because  henceforth  the  God  of  the  church  and  the  God  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  shall  be  your  God.  You  mean  to 
dwell  with  the  Lord's  people  and  live  and  die  with  them,  for 
their  God  is  your  God. 

Some  of  you  have  lately  been  converted,  or  profess  to 
have  been  so ;  I  trust  your  profession  is  thoroughly  truthful, 
but  be  sure  you  examine  yourselves.    Have  you  taken  God 

j  to  be  your  God  ?  Not  to  be  a  mere  name  to  you,  nor  as 
a  sacred  word  to  sing  about  and  pray  about — but  as  truly 
God  to  you.  Is  God  in  very  deed  your  God  f  for  if  he 
be  he  will  rule  your  soul,  he  will  dominate  your  whole  spirit, 

I  and  sway  his  sceptre  over  your  whole  heart.    No  man  is 


MY  GOD. 


truly  converted  until  God  takes  his  right  place  in  relation- 
ship to  him.  The  wicked  forget  God,  the  men  of  -Belial  defy 
God,  the  infidel  defies  God,  but  the  child  of  God  owns  God, 
submits  to  his*  authority,  and  gives  him  the  throne  of  his 
heart.  He  does  not  give  the  Lord  a  secondary  place,  and 
permit  self  to  be~first,  for  that  would  be  to  deify  self  and 
insult  the  Lord  ;  but  he  makes  God  to  be  God,  that  is  first 
and  sole  in  authority  and  power.  This  is  a  sure  index  of 
true  conversion: — when  God  is  God  in  your  soul.  As  I  have 
already  said,  God  is  not  God  to  a  great  many,  he  is  but 
a  name  and  nothing  more  to  them  ;  but  when  he  becomes 
God — and  it  is  a  great  word  that — when  he  takes  the  place 
which  the  Creator,  the  Redeemer,  the  God  should  occupy, 
then  is  the  soul  converted  indeed.  Now,  whether  we  were 
converted  yesterday,  or  have  known  the  Lord  for  twenty, 
thirty,  or  forty  years,  I  trust  we  can  address  our  mother,  the 
church,  and  say  as  Ruth  said  to  Naomi,  "  Where  thou  lodgest 
I  will  lodge  :  thy  people  shall  be  my  people,  and  thy  God 
my  God."1 

These  words,  in  the  next  place,  may  be  regarded  as  the 
statement  of  the  Christian' 's  belief :  I  mean  here  not  merely 
his  confession  of  it,  but  his  after  statement  of  it.  Here 
is  our  creed  and  our  confession  of  faith.  Take  Thomas 
for  our  illustration.  He  has  been  very  sceptical.  Poor 
Thomas  !  He  seems  to  have  had  too  much  brain  and  too 
little  heart ;  he  was  always  for  fighting  his  way  through 
intricate  questions  and  for  answering  tough  objections ; 
had  he  been  alive  now,  if  the  grace  of  God  had  not  improved 
him,  he  would  have  been  a  "  modern  thought "  divine,  a 
critical  brother  suggesting  more  problems  than  all  the  rest  of 
us  could  solve.  He  must  have  tokens,  marks,  and  evi- 
dences, or  else  he  will  not  believe ;  but  he  is  highly  in- 
dulged, and  the  Saviour  permits  him  to  put  his  fingers  into 
the  prints  of  the  nails,  and  his  hand  into  his  side,  and  when 
he  has  done  so,  Thomas  by  a  strange  and  blessed  logic  infers 


MY  GOD. 


345 


the  deity  of  Christ  from  his  wounds.  He  was  the  first,  I 
believe,  who  had  ever  done  so,  but  certainly  not  the  last, 
and  having  from  the  very  wounds  of  his  Lord's  body  inferred 
his  deity,  he  exclaimed,  "  My  Lord  and  my  God  !  "  In  this 
plain,  decided  testimony  to  our  Lord's  divinity  we  all  unite. 
It  is  the  heartfelt  confession  of  faith  of  every  Christian 
in  reference  to  the  Lord  Jesus ;  there  is  no  room  for 
two  opinions  on  that  point.  If  there  be  any  professing 
Christians  in  this  world  who  do  not  call  Christ  their  God — 
well,  brethren,  we  are  sorry  for  them,  and  pray  the  Lord  to 
give  them  spiritual  life  and  light ;  but  as  for  us,  the  Man 
who  bled  on  Calvary  is  "  very  God  of  very  God  "  to  us,  and 
that  in  the  broadest  and  deepest  sense.  As  the  angels  bow 
before  him,  so  also  do  we  ;  we  count  him  (i  worthy  to  receive 
honor  and  power  divine."  There  are  many  differences  of 
opinion  in  the  church  of  God  which  may  be  tolerated,  but 

-  this  is  beyond  all  controversy  and  can  never  be  a  moot  point. 
Here  our  protests  against  error  must  be  firm  and  unmistaka- 
ble. I  admired  a  remark  that"  was  once  very  merrily  made 
by  good  William  Gadsby  when  a  Unitarian  chapel  had  been 
erected  near  a  Baptist  place  of  worship.  The  story  has  been 
told  to  me  that  some  one  in  the  vestry  was  greatly  mourning 
over  the  circumstance,  and  saying  what  a  sad  opposition  it 
was.  Gadsby  said,  "  Well,  man,  I  do  not  see  any  opposition 
in  it."  "  But  surely  it  is  a  great  opposition,  Mr.  Gadsby. 
They  deny  the  deity  of  Christ."  "  Why  man,"  said  Gadsby, 
"  that  is  no  opposition.  Suppose  you  kept  a  baker's  shop, 
and  sold  good  bread,  and  a  man  came  and  opened  an  iron- 
monger's shop  opposite,  would  you  call  that  an  opposition  ? 
Certainly  not,  it  is  a  different  line  altogether."  And  so  it  is. 
Where  we  preach  the  deity  of  Christ,  that  is  one  line  of 
things  ;  but  where  that  is  denied  we  cannot  regard  it  as 
another  form  of  Christianity  ;  it  is  a  different  thing  alto- 
gether, quite  as  different  as  iron  would  be  from  bread.  The 

i  Socinian  is  nearer  akin  to  the  Mohammedan  than  to  the 
15* 


346 


MY  GOD. 


Christian.  He  who  does  not  own  the  deity  of  Jesus  disowns 
him  altogether.  I  cannot  see  how  Jesus  Christ  can  be  any- 
thing but  one  of  two  things — either  the  Son  of  God  or  else  a 
gross  impostor  who  allowed  his  disciples  to  think  him  divine, 
and  used  the  virtues  of  his  character  to  support  his  claim  ; 
all  the  worse  an  impostor  because  he  had  a  fine  moral  sense, 
and  yet  employed  even  virtue's  self  to  aid  his  blasphemous 
ambition.  Either  God  or  an  arch-deceiver  he  must  have 
been.  Brethren,  we  will  have  no  mincing  of  matters  about 
that  point.  Charity  is  all  very  well,  but  truth  comes  first. 
"  First  pure,  then  peaceable,"  is  a  good  rule  for  our  judg- 
ment on  such  points.  On  the  matter  of  our  Lord's  Godhead 
we  cannot  for  an  instant  hesitate  :  we  do  not  merely  believe 
Jesus  Christ  to  be  God,  but  we  risk  our  eternal  future  upon 
that  truth.  I  am  a  lost  man,  I  know,  and  for  me  there  can 
be  nothing  but  eternal  destruction  from  the  presence  of  the 
Lord,  if  the  Saviour,  Christ,  be  not  divine.  But  he  is  divine. 
This  we  will  maintain  in  the  teeth  of  all  men  as  our  confes- 
sion of  faith — Jesus  Christ  the  Son  of  the  Highest,  very  God 
of  very  God,  is  my  Lord  and  my  God. 

Thus,  then,  my  God  is  the  first  and  last  confession  of  faith 
of  those  who  are  under  the  new  covenant;  it  is  the  utterance 
both  of  the  babe  in  grace  and  of  the  more  advanced  Christian. 

Furthermore,  my  brethren,  the  words,  "  My  God,"  have 
often  been  used  to  declare  the  determination  of  the  believer 
when  he  has  been  surrounded  by  opponents  and  persecutors. 
Grandly  did  old  Micaiah  use  this  expression  when  the  false 
priests  were  round  about  him.  Prophets  who  pretended  to 
be  inspired  delivered  their  oracles,  and  old  Micaiah  said, 
"  As  the  Lord  my  God  liveth.  Whatsoever  my  God  saith 
unto  me  that  will  I  speak."  Neither  less  or  more  did  he 
speak,  because  he  believed  in  Jehovah  as  being  his  God,  and 
submitted  himself  entirely  to  Jehovah's  sway.  The  false 
worshipped  Baal,  Moloch,  and  Astaroth  ;  but  old  Micaiah 
cared  not  what  they  worshipped,  he  knew  who  was  his  God, 


MY  GOD. 


347 


and  he  avowed  his  God  to  their  teeth.  Oh,  ye  who  call 
yourselves  the  people  of  God,  be  ready  always  to  stand  up 
for  Jehovah  in  whatever  company  you  may  be  ;  for  there  are 
many  gods  and  many  lords  in  our  land  at  this  day,  and 
multitudes  of  professed  Christians  have  turned  aside  from 
worshipping  the  God  of  Israel.  They  have  set  up  new  gods, 
and  the  Eternal  is  despised.  The  Old  Testament,  they  tell 
us,  is  a  revelation  uncouth  and  harsh  :  the  God  of  Abraham, 
and  Isaac,  and  Jacob  is  not  at  all  the  God  of  their  fancy,  for 
he  is  too  terrible,  too  severe,  too  righteous,  too  just.  They 
want  a  milder,  gentler  God,  and  they  pretend  that  Jesus 
Christ  has  revealed  quite  a  different  deity  from  the  God  of 
the  Old  Testament.  Ah,  brethren,  in  this,  they  greatly  err, 
for  the  Lord  changeth  not,  and  is  the  same  to-day  under  the 
gospel  as  he  was  under  the  law.  We  believe  in  the  God  of 
Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  "  the  God  of  the  whole  earth 
shall  he  be  called."  We  worship  the  God  of  Israel,  the  God 
who  made  the  heavens  and  the  earth,  ike  God  who  cleft  the 
Red  Sea,  the  God  who  spake  in  thunder  from  Sinai.  We 
believe  that  Jesus  Christ  has  not  come  to  reveal  to  us  a  new 
deity,  but  to  declare  unto  us  the  God  who  is  from  the  begin- 
ning. Ours  is  the  song  of  Zacharias  :  "  Blessed  be  the  Lord 
God  of  Israel ;  for  he  hath  visited  and  redeemed  his  people, 
and  hath  raised  up  an  horn  of  salvation  for  us  in  the  house 
of  his  servant  David  ;  as  he  spake  by  the  mouth  of  his  holy 
prophets,  which  have  been  since  the  world  began."  "This 
God  is  our  God  forever  and  ever  :  he  shall  be  our  guide  even 
unto  death." 

"  The  God  of  Abraham  praise 

Who  reigns  enthroned  above, 
Ancient  of  everlasting  days, 

And  God  of  love  ! 

Jehovah,  Great  I  AM  ! 

By  earth  and  heaven  conf est ; 
I  bow,  and  bless  the  sacred  name, 

Forever  blest !  " 


34:8  MY  GOD. 

The  words  u  My  God"  may  well  express  the  secret  voioof 
the  believer  as  he  consecrates  himself  to  the  Most  High :  of 
this  we  have  an  instance  in  the  life  of  Jacob.  He  said,  "  If 
God  will  be  with  me,  and  will  keep  me  in  this  way  that  I  go, 
and  will  give  me  bread  to  eat  and  raiment  to  put  on,  so  that 
I  come  again  to  my  father's  house  in  peace  :  then  shall  the 
Lord  be  my  God."  We  have  each  said  that,  I  hope,  many 
times,  when  we  have  renewed  our  vows  unto  the  Lord. 
Though  we  have  known  the  Lord  for  twenty  or  thirty  years, 
yet,  as  we  have  needed  him  anew  in  time  of  trouble,  or  as  he 
has  revealed  himself  to  us  afresh  in  a  way  of  deliverance,  we 
have  laid  hold  of  him  by  faith  over  again  and  said,  "  Yes, 
he  is  my  God."  Have  you  never  felt  your  heart  full  to  over- 
flowing while  thinking  over  such  a  text  as  this,  "  My  Be- 
loved is  mine  and  I  am  his  "  ?  I  do  not  know  a  more  de- 
lightful contemplation  for  a  quiet  hour  alone  than  to  weigh 
each  syllable  of  that  promise,  "  I  will  be  their  God,  and  they 
shall  be  my  people."  Look  it  over,  turn  it  over,  taste  it, 
feed  on  it,  and  digest  it,  and  see  the  mutual  possession,  even 
as  in  those  other  texts,  "  The  Lord's  portiou  is  his  people," 
and  "  The  Lord  is  my  portion  saith  my  soul."  Christ  is 
ours  and  we  are  Christ's.  You  cannot,  dear  friend,  do  bet- 
ter than  oftentimes  hand  over  the  title-deed  of  your  soul  to 
God,  yea,  not  of  your  soul  only,  but  of  everything  you  have, ' 
for  if  you  make  an  inventory  of  all  you  have  to  the  last 
penny,  it  is  your  Lord's.  Even  so  is  the  Lord  altogether 
yours,  and  you  should  often  renew  your  grasp  of  him.  Take 
him  to  be  your  only  Lord  and  God  as  long  as  you  live,  and, 
while  others  boast  in  their  treasures,  be  it  your  joy  to  cry, 
"  Whom  have  I  in  heaven  but  thee,  and  there  is  none  upon 
the  earth  that  I  desire  beside  thee."  Thus  with  two  words, 
"  My  God,"  we  avow  our  faith  both  in  the  presence  of  our 
enemies  and  before  our  Lord  himself. 

But  I  cannot  linger  here.  I  must  have  you  notice  next, 
that  these  words,  "My  God,"  have  sometimes  afforded  the 


MY  GOD.  349 

deepest  possible  comfort  to  children  of  God  in  times  of  terri- 
ble trouble.  When  our  dear  Lord  and  Master  was  in  his 
greatest  woe — when  all  the  waves  and  billows  of  judg- 
ment were  going  over  his  soul,  the  exclamation  which  came 
from  him  at  the  climax  of  his  grief  was,  "  My  God  !  My 
God  ! "  True,  it  was  attended  with  the  question,  "  Why 
hast  thou  forsaken  me?"  but  still,  as  with  a  two-handed 
grip,  he  seemed  to  get  hold  of  God  when  he  said,  "  My  God  ! 
My  God!"  Driven  to  extremity,  he  settled  his  heart  on 
that  one  point.  There  was  the  anchor  hold  of  his  hope, 
"My  God,  my  God."  He  did  not  say,  "My  disciples"  : 
they  had  all  forsaken  him.  He  could  not  call  on  his  mother 
and  brethren  :  they  were  powerless  to  console.  No  arm, 
angelic  or  human,  could  minister  to  his  aid.  He  was  alone 
in  the  grasp  of  death,  unsupported  and  unsustained,  for- 
saken of  earth  and  heaven,  and  left  a  prey  to  the  powers  of 
darkness  ;  but  this — this  was  the  cry  which  kept  him  alive, 
and  gave  him  strength  to  bear  even  to  the  end.  "  My 
God,"  saith  he,  "  they  have  not  robbed  me  of  thee.  My 
God,  I  still  appeal  to  thee.  Though  thou  hide  thy  face  and 
seem  to  forsake  me,  yet  I  know  thou  still  art  mine,  and  I 
hold  thee  fast  to  the  end.  My  God  !  my  God  ! "  You  will 
never  have  to  use  those  words  in  so  dire  an  extremity  of  woe  ; 
•  but  if  hereafter  you  ever  come  into  deep  waters,  may  you 
have  grace  to  say,  "  My  God,"  for  if  you  do  you  will  soon  be 
enabled  to  shout,  "It  is  finished."  "My  God,"  is  a  love 
note  in  times  of  peace,  and  a  war  cry  for  hours  of  battle  ;  it 
is  mighty  in  times  of  joy,  but  it  is  still  more  potent  in  nights 
of  sorrow.  The  man  who  can  say  "My  God,"  is  a  match  for 
death  and  hell  ;  by  that  watchword  he  shall  master  sin  and 
overthrow  all  the  hosts  of  the  world,  the  flesh,  and  the  devil. 
In  this  sign  thou  mayest  conquer  :  the  watchword  of  victory 
is,  "My  God." 

Once  more.  These  words  have  been  heard  in  cases  pre- 
cisely the  opposite  of  deep  distress.    When  very  marvellous 


350 


MY  GOD. 


deliverances  have  been  enjoyed,  the  expression  "My  God" 
has  frequently  come  from  the  lips  of  those  who  have  experi- 
enced them.  When  Miriam  took  her  timbrel  and  went  forth 
in  the  dance  because  God  had  overthrown  Pharaoh  and  his 
hosts,  she  sung  a  song  which  Moses  had  composed  for  her, 
and  you  will  remember  that  one  of  the  verses  was — "  He  is 
my  God,  and  I  will  prepare  him  a  habitation ;  my  father's 
God,  and  I  will  exalt  him."  She  had  never  reached  that 
point,  "He  is  my  Goc[,"  until  Pharaoh's  hosts  and  his 
chosen  captains  had  been  drowned  in  the  Red  Sea  :  then  she 
felt  proud  that  she  had  such  a  God,  and  her  faith  exulted  as 
she  beheld  his  arm  made  bare.  Think  also  of  Daniel,  and  that 
happy  moment  when  he  exultingly  called  Jehovah  his  God. 
When  the  prophet  had  been  all  night  in  the  lion's  den, 
Darius  comes,  and  with  a  plaintive  cry  he  asks  if  Daniel  yet 
lives.  He  is  afraid  the  lions  have  devoured  him.  Do  you 
notice  Daniel's  answer  ?  He  says,  "  My  God  has  sent  an 
angel,  and  hath  shut  the  lions'  mouth."  You  do  not  wonder 
that  he  said  "  My  God,"  do  you  ?  I  do  not  think  he  could 
have  coolly  said,  "  God — God  hath  sent  his  angel."  He 
could  not  have  spoken  so  coldly.  The  deliverance  he  had 
experienced,  the  great  goodness  of  God  in  keeping  him  alive 
that  night  in  the  lions'  den,  made  him  feel  that  he  must 
with  arms  of  love  and  faith  embrace  the  Omnipotent  Pre- 
server, and  call  him  "  My  God."  If  you  have  seen  your  sins 
drowned  in  the  Red  Sea  you  have  said,  "  My  God,"  and  if 
the  lions  have  been  chained,  and  you  have  escaped  their  jaws, 
you,  too,  have  said,  "  My  God."  I  earnestly  hope  that  if  the 
trouble  which  has  now  come  upon  you  should  prove  to  be 
sharper  and  more  grievous  than  any  before,  it  may  turn  out 
to  have  been  sent  in  order  that  you  may  say  "My  God" 
with  a  deeper  emphasis,  and  feel  your  soul  more  fully  filled 
with  the  blessed  meaning  of  those  two  matchless  monosyllables. 

So  much,  then,  about  the  times  when  these  words  have 
been  used.    May  the  Spirit  of  God  lead  us  to  those  special- 


MY  GOD. 


351 


ties  of  experience  in  the  midst  of  which  these  words  shall 
become  the  frequent  language  of  our  hearts. 

II.  Briefly  let  us  notice  in  the  second  place  what  means* 
this  first  word  "mt" — "my  God."  In  what  sense  and 
respects  can  God  be  mine  ?  He  fills  heaven  and  earth — can 
I  call  him  mine  ?  "  His  tender  mercies  are  over  all  his 
works" :  I  cannot  set  a  hedge  around  his  benevolence,  or 
claim  a  monopoly  of  his  compassion.  How,  then,  can  I  call 
him  mine  ?  He  is  so  inconceivable  ;  he  is  boundless  in 
nature ;  his  every  attribute  is  infinite.  A  man  may  call  a 
province  his  own,  for  it  is  within  his  compass,  he  can  travel 
over  it,  or  sail  round  it :  an  emperor  may  call  thousands  of 
square  miles  his  own,  for,  still,  the  eagle's  pinion  or  the 
dove's  light  wing  can  soar  from  boundary  to  boundary  of  his 
empire.  The  broadest  dominion  may  be  mapped  and  meas- 
ured ;  but  how  can  I  call  that  mine  which  I  cannot  even 
conceive  ?  If  my  thought  cannot  compass  it,  shall  my  heart 
possess  it?  Yes,  yes,  so  the  text  says.  "My  God."  Love 
possesses  what  reason  cannot  even  look  upon. 

Still,  what  means  this  daring  appropriation  ?  Why,  it  must 
mean  this  among  other  things  :  first,  that  lown  him  to  be  my 
God.  Whatever  gods  others  may  have,  Jehovah  is  God  to 
me.  To  whomsoever  Jehovah  may  be  a  name,  he  is  God  to 
me,  and,  as  Father,  Son,  and  Spirit,  three  persons  in  one 
blessed  unity,  I  adore  him.  He  may  be  despised  and  re- 
jected ;  there  may  be  other  names  set  up  in  competition 
with  him,  but  to  me — to  me — he  is  the  only  God.  I  wish 
that  you  in  this  assembly  may  all  say  at  once,  most  heartily 
and  distinctly, — "  Let  others  do  as  they  will,  but  as  for  me 
and  my  house,  we  will  serve  the  Lord."  I  hope  you  will 
avow  yourselves  this  day  to  be  his  people,  and  take  the  God 
of  Israel,  the  God  and  Father  of  your  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  to 
be  your  God.  That  is  a  part  of  the  meaning.  There  is  an 
owning  the  Lord  to  be  our  God. 

But,  next,  the  words  imply  a  personal  recognition  of  Mm. 


352 


MY  GOD. 


Venus  and  Jupiter  and  Bacchus,  those  ancient  deities  of 
Greece  and  Borne,  we  have  all  talked  about  them  as  myths 
and  fictions,  but  as  actual  gods  we  ignore  them,  they  are  no 
gods  to  us.  Some  of  us  read  classical  books  in  our  boyhood  : 
I  am  sure  they  have  done  us  more  harm  than  good,  but  we 
have  read  them,  and  therefore  we  know  all  about  the  ima- 
ginary history  and  doings  of  those  most  disgusting  gods  and 
goddesses  :  but  we  are  very  well  aware  that  they  are  dreams 
and  falsehoods ;  we  know  no  such  beings,  they  are  nothing 
to  us.  We  have  heard  also  of  Juggernauth,  and  of  the 
thousand  and  millions  of  gods  of  Hindustan,  but  we  have  no 
acquaintance  with  them.  I  have  felt  thankful  when  I  have 
seen  likenesses  of  Krishna  and  Siva  that  they  were  no  rela- 
tions of  mine.  There  is  one  god  with  an  elephant's  head, 
and  another  god  with  a  cat's  head  :  I  am  delighted  to  think 
that  I  never  was  on  speaking  terms  with  such  monsters,  and 
could  never  call  them  mine.  If  they  be  gods  to  others  they 
are  not  so  to  us  :  we  know  them  not,  their  names  we  despise, 
and  their  pretensions  we  detest.  But,  brethren,  we  know 
our  God.  It  is  true  we  have  not  seen  him  at  any  time. 
"  Ye  saw  no  similitude,"  said  he,  when  he  spake  to  his 
people  from  the  top  of  Sinai.  We  have  neither  heard  his 
voice  at  any  time,  nor  seen  his  shape  ;  yet  as  spirits  speak  to 
spirits  we  have  been  cognizant  of  the  action  of  the  Spirit  of 
God  upon  our  spirits.  You  and  I  know  that  we  have  often 
been  moved  by  one  another's  spirits.  This  very  night  while 
I  am  speaking  my  spirit  is  known  of  your  spirit,  and  you  are 
recognizing  my  spirit  while  I  speak  :  in  much  the  same  way 
the  Holy  Spirit,  by  his  mysterious  operations,  has  come  into 
contact  with  our  spirits,  so  that  though  we  know  him  not  by 
sight,  and  hearing,  and  taste,  and  smell,  all  of  which  deceive 
us,  yet  we  recognize  him  by  an  inner  and  infallible  sense 
which  was  created  in  us  at  our  regeneration  by  the  hand  of 
God.  There  is  a  God  we  know  by  spiritual  perception.  He 
has  opened  our  ear  so  that  we  hear  his  voice  ;  he  has  given 


MY  GOD. 


353 


us  new  sight  by  which  we  perceive  him,  and  are  even  more 
assured  of  his  presence  than  we  could  be  if  we  had  the  evi- 
dence of  our  eyes  and  ears.  He  is  not  a  God  in  cloudland  to 
us,  he  is  intensely  real  and  true  ;  he  is  a  God  with  whom  we 
speak  :  a  God  who  calls  himself  our  friend,  our  Father  ;  a 
God  who  invites  us  to  come  and  reason  with  him  ;  a  God  who 
assures  us  of  the  love  of  his  heart ;  a  God  who  tells  us  his 
secrets,  for  "  the  secret  of  the  Lord  is  with  them  that  fear 
him."  0  men  of  the  world,  we  are  as  sure  of  the  existence 
of  God  and  of  his  being  ours  as  ever  you  can  be  sure  of  your 
gold  or  your  lands,  and  we  are  as  truly  acquainted  with  him 
as  you  are  with  your  friends.  Hence  it  is  that  he  is  no  longer 
simply  God  to  me,  but  he  is  "  My  God."  Just  as  when  I  know 
a  man  by  familiar  intercourse,  he  is  not  merely  a  friend,  but 
he  is  "  my  friend,"  so  has  it  come  to  pass  between  God  and  us  ; 
and  by  each  believer  he  is  fitly  styled,  "  My  God." 

I  hope  the  matter  has  proceeded  farther  than  that.  "We 
not  merely  know  that  he  is  God,  and  have  not  only  recog- 
nized his  divine  existence,  but  we  have  come  into  relations 
with  Mm.  There  is  a  natural  and  necessary  relation  between 
God  and  his  creatures  ;  but  it  is  not  always  recognized. 
When  it  is  discerned  by  the  soul,  because  the  Spirit  of  God 
illuminates  the  heart,  man  rises  into  a  new  relationship 
to  God,  and  feels  as  he  never  felt  before.  For  instance, 
he  comes  into  the  relation  of  a  pardoned  child.  Oh,  if 
you  have  ever  been  forgiven  you  will  know  him  that  forgave 
you,  and  you  will  say,  "  My  God."  If  you  feel  the  Spirit  of 
adoption  now  within  your  heart  you  will  know  who  adopted 
you,  and  you  will  cry  "My  God,  my  Father."  You  receive 
of  his  bounty  according  to  the  gift  of  his  grace  from  day 
to  day,  and  therefore  while  consciously  receiving  abundant 
mercies  from  the  Lord,  you  learn  to  say,  "  My  God  will 
supply  all  my  needs,  according  to  his  riches  in  glory  by 
Christ  Jesus." 

The  pith  of  the  matter  lies  in  this.    "My  God"  means 


354 


MY  GOD. 


that  we  have  appropriated  him  to  ourselves.  We  take  him.  by 
a  daring  act  of  faith  to  be  henceforth  God  to  us,  and  all  that 
he  is  we  take  to  be  ours  forever  and  ever.  May  we  do  this  ? 
Brethren,  may  we  do  this  ?  Ah,  yes,  appropriating  faith 
is  warranted  in  the  covenant,  for  the  covenant  runs  thus  : 
"I  will  be  their  God,  and  they  shall  be  my  people."  It 
is  justified  also  by  the  act  of  God,  for  did  he  not  give  his 
Son  ?  And  when  he  gave  his  Son  to  redeem  us  could  he 
withhold  anything  from  us  ?  Did  he  not  in  that  act  virtually 
give  us  himself,  for  Christ  is  in  the  Father,  and  the  Father 
is  in  him,  and  he  that  hath  received  Jesus  hath  received 
the  Father.  Say  "  My  Saviour,"  and  you  need  not  be  afraid 
to  say  "  My  God."  Moreover,  not  merely  does  the  covenant 
warrant  it,  and -the  act  of  God  justify  it,  but  there  is  the 
witness  of  the  Spirit  within  us,  which  hath  taught  us  our 
right  to  say,  "  My  God."  When  we  have  said  unto  the  Lord, 
"  Thou  art  my  God,"  the  Holy  Spirit  has  not  chided  us,  nor 
smitten  our  conscience,  nor  rebuked  us  for  presumption,  nor 
humbled  us  for  pride  on  that  account ;  but,  on  the  contrary, 
peace  has  followed — calm  rest,  holy  joy,  quiet  trustfulness, 
assured  confidence,  all  of  which  are  the  true  fruits  of  saying, 
"  My  God,"  and  at  the  same  time  the  genuine  works  of 
the  Spirit  of  God.  Thus  we  know  that  we  have  not  erred 
when  we  have  made  this  claim.  Moreover,  dear  friends, 
we  may  expect  our  confidence  and  assured  appropriation 
to  become  stronger  and  stronger  as  life  goes  on.  We  have 
not  been  wrong  in  saying,  "  My  God,"  for  we  have  grown 
into  saying  it  more  and  more  in  proportion  as  the  Lord  has 
sanctified  us.  As  we  conquer  sin,  we  say,  "My  God"  more 
assuredly,  and  as  we  grow  in  grace  we  say,  "  My  God  "  with 
greater  confidence  :  therefore  it  cannot  be  wrong.  We  expect 
in  heaven  to  say  "  My  God  "  still  more  positively.  Beloved, 
how  boldly  we  shall  say  it  there  !  No  sin,  no  doubts,  no 
clouds  to  divide  us  from  him  ;  then  shall  we  know  that  the 
infinite  Jehovah  is  ours  to  enjoy  forever  and  ever.  Oh/it 


MY  GOD. 


355 


is  not  crowns  of  gold,  it  is  not  music  of  sweetest  harps,  it 
is  not  palm  branches  or  white  robes  of  victory  that  our  souls 
will  most  delight  tnemselves  in  :  we  shall  triumph  in  6  God 
our  exceeding  joy."  "At  his  right  hand  are  pleasures  for- 
ever more."  We  shall  even  in  heaven  find  it  bliss  to  say 
to  ourselves,  "  God  is  mine."  What  God  does  is  great,  what 
God  has  is  great,  but  what  God  is  is  far  more  than  what  he 
does  or  has,  because  he  can  do  and  have  infinitely  more  than 
he  ever  has  done  or  has  created  ;  yet  it  is  God  himself  and 
what  he  is  which  is  ours  forever.  In  grasping  the  Lord 
by  faith,  and  saying,  "  He  is  mine,"  and  what  a  sweep  the 
soul  has  made  !  It  has,  as  it  were,  encompassed  eternity,  set 
its  own  seal  upon  infinity,  and  appropriated  All-sufficiency. 

III.  Finally,  let  us  spend  two  or  three  minutes  upon  the 
last  word — "my  God."  "God  !"  What  does  it  mean? 
Ah,  now,  you  have  asked  me  a  question  which  I  cannot 
answer.  The  wise  man  was  asked  "  What  is  God  ?  "  and  he 
requested  that  he  might  have  a  day  to  consider  his  answer. 
When  the  sun  had  set  he  said  he  must  have  three  days,  for 
in  thinking  of  it  the  subject  grew.  They  gave  him  three 
days,  and  when  these  were  over  he  demanded  six  days  more, 
for  the  subject  was  greater  than^ever.  When  they  called 
upon  him  at  the  six  days'  end,  he  claimed  twelve  days  more, 
for  the  subject  was  still  beyond  him.  They  bade  him  take 
the  twelve  days,  and  they  would  hear  the  result  of  his 
thoughts.  The  next  time  he  said  that  he  must  have  a 
month ;  and,  at  the  month's  end  he  gave  them  no  informa- 
tion, but  assured  them  he  must  have  a  year.  When  the  year 
was  over,  he  confessed  that  he  should  need  a  lifetime  :  he 
should  never  be  able  to  tell  them  what  God  was  so  long 
as  he  lived.  There  is  no  defining  the  "Incomprehensible  One. 
Yet,  brother,  you  and  I  can  call  him  "  My  God." 

Let  us  reflect  upon  his  being  ours  as  to  his  nature,  his 
person,  his  essence.  There  is  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Spirit 
—three  in  one  :  then  the  Father  is  my  God  :  he  hath  loved 


356 


MY  GOD. 


me,  he  hath  chosen  me,  he  hath  begotten  me,  hath  provided 
for  me,  he  is  my  Father,  my  all.  Then,  too,  the  adorable 
Son  is  mine — Jesus,  the  Redeemer,  the  Prophet,  Priest,  and 
King,  the  Intercessor,  the  Judge,  is  mine.  Then  the  Holy 
Spirit  is  mine — the  Instructor,  the  Quickener,  the  Sanctifier, 
the  Comforter.  Dew,  fire,  wind,  dove — whatever  the  meta- 
phor under  which  he  veils  himself — he  is  mine.  The  Father, 
the  Son,  the  Holy  Spirit — to  these  beloved  and  glorious  per- 
sons of  the  undivided  Godhead  faith  says  "My  God." 

When  I  have  thought  of  the  blessed  persons  let  me  think 
of  his  attributes.  Omniscience  is  mine,  the  Lord  knows 
everything  for  me.  Omnipotence  is  mine,  he  will  do  every- 
thing for  me.  Justice  is  mine,  reconciled  to  me  by  the  death 
of  Jesus.  Mercy  is  mine,  enduring  forever.  Truth  is  mine, 
he  will  keep  his  promise.  Immutability  is  mine,  he  changeth 
not,  and  therefore  I  am  not  consumed.  Rehearse  all  the  at- 
tributes peculiar  to  the  divine  nature  and  say  unto  the  Lord 
"  Thou  art  my  God,  and  therefore  all  thy  blessed  perfections 
and  glorious  attributes  are  mine." 

Think  of  him  again  in  what  he  has  done,  as  well  as  what 
he  is.  As  Creator  he  is  my  Creator  ;  not  merely  as  creating 
me,  but  as  making  "  all  things  "  for  me,  that  I  may  richly 
enjoy  them.  Whatever  I  look  upon  I  may  enjoy,  because 
he  made  it.  He  hath  made  all  things  holy,  and  the  curse 
which  sin  engendered  he  has  removed  through  the  death  of 
his  Son,  and  now  as  I  traverse  the  world  I  may  delight  myself 
in  the  works  of  the  Creator  and  say/4  These  are  thy  glorious 
works,  Parent  of  good,  Almighty  ;  and  thou  givest  them  to 
me  that  I  may  see  thee  in  them  and  enjoy  them  to  thine 
honor."  The  Lord  is  also  our  Redeemer,  and  the  believer 
calls  him  "my  Redeemer"  and  "my  God."  I.t  was  my  God 
that  poured  out  his  life  unto  death  upon  the  bloody  tree. 
My  God  hath  loved  me  and  given  himself  for  me.  The  Lord 
is,  moreover,  the  Sanctifier,  he  carries  on  the  work  of  graco 
in  the  soul,  and  in  this  he  is  my  God.    He  is  the  God  of 


MY  GOD. 


357 


providence,  and  ruleth  all  things  according  to  his  will ;  and 
in  that  character  he  is  my  G-od.  The  Lord  Jesus  Christ  will 
come  to  judge  the  world,  and  heaven  and  earth  shall  pass 
away  before  the  glory  of  his  face  ;  but  he  that  shall  make 
heaven  rock  and  reel  is  my  God,  and  he  that  shall  make  the 
rocks  run  like  rivers,  and  the  stars  fall  like  withered  leaves 
from  the  tree,  is  my  God,  the  God  of  my  salvation.  Oh,  is 
it  not  blessed  to  think  of  God  under  any  light  or  aspect 
under  which  you  are  able  to  conceive  of  him,  and  then  to  be 
able  to  say  at  the  end  of  it  all,  "  He  is  my  God  in  all  his 
works  and  in  all  his  relationships,  in  all  his  attributes,  and 
all  his  glories  "  ?  To  me  it  is  the  utmost  bliss  at  this  moment 
to  claim  with  each  one  of  my  brethren  that  he  is  my  God. 

Do  you  know,  if  you  could  once  say  this — and  I  do 
wish  that  every  man,  woman,  and  child  in  this  house  could 
from  the  heart  say,  "My  God" — if  you  could  say  this,  it 
would  sweeten  so  many  things  to  you.  This  book — how  you 
would  love  this  precious  Bible,  for  then  you  would  say,  "It 
is  my  book  now,  because  it  is  my  Father's  book — my  God's 
book."  You  would  value  every  line  of  it.  There  would  be 
a  new  sweetness  in  every  single  verse,  because  it  is  your 
Father's  handwriting,  inspired  by  his  own  Spirit — that 
Spirit  which  belongs  to  you,  and  it  tells  you  of  your  own 
Saviour — who  loves  you,  and  who  gave  himself  for  you.  If 
you  could  call  God  your  own,  you  would  love  the  Sabbath 
supremely,  because  you  would  say,  "  It  is  my  day,  because  it 
is  the  Lord's  day — the  day  of  my  risen  Saviour.  He  has  taken 
it  to  himself,  and  enclosed  its  hours  for  his  own,  and  now 
henceforth  I  prize  its  earliest  and  its  latest  moments  because 
they  are  his."  A  sense  of  the  Lord's  being  yours  would  make 
you  love  his  people  too.  When  I  first  came  to  London  from 
the  village  where  I  formerly  preached,  I  was  very  glad  to  see 
anybody  who  came  from  that  region  ;  and  if  I  had  seen  a  dog 
wag  its  tail  that  I  had  once  seen  in  that  village.  I  should  have 
been  pleased.    I  should  have  loved  anybody  for  the  sake  of 


358 


MY  GOD. 


the  dear  old  place ;  and,  surely,  when  you  can  say,  "  My 
God,"  you  love  all  the  Lord's  people.  Many  a  young  Chris- 
tian has  been  deceived  by  hypocrites  because  of  his  love  to 
Christians,  and  that  love  is  sometimes  abated  by  such  ill 
deeds ;  but  where  there  is  overflowing  love  to  the  Father 
there  will  be  affection  for  the  family.  Be  it  ours  to  show  it. 
If  you  see  in  any  man  anything  that  is  like  Christ,  love  him 
for  it.  If  he  is  not  all  you  would  like  him  to  be,  remember 
that  you,  also,  are  not  all  you  ought  to  be.  Surely  if  Jesus 
Christ  loves  a  man  you  should  love  him  too.  Seek  your 
brother's  good  and  aim  at  benefiting  him  because  he  is  one 
of  Christ's  members.  Love  for  Christ's  sake  all  those  who 
can  say  "My  God."  * 

I  do  not  know,  but  I  seem  to  myself  to  have  talked  away 
and  to  have  missed  my  aim  and  object  altogether,  compared 
with  what  I  have  felt  while  meditating  in  private  upon  these 
dear  and  blessed  words,  "  My  God."  It  is  a  deep  well,  but 
the  water  is  cool  and  sweet  if  you  can  draw  it  up.  "My 
God," — there  is  more  than  satisfaction  in  the  words.  If  you 
have  no  money,  never  mind  ;  you  are  rich  if  you  can  say, 
"  My  God."  If  the  husband  is  buried,  if  the  children  have 
gone  home  to  heaven,  do  not  despair,  thy  Maker  is  thy 
husband,  if  you  can  cry,  "My  God."  If  your  friends  have 
forsaken  you,  if  those  who  ought  to  have  sustained  you  have 
been  cruel  and  unkind  to  you,  he  changes  not,  and  he  bids 
you  call  him,  "My  God."  If  the  unkindnesses  of  men  drive 
you  to  say  ".My  God,"  you  will  be  a  gainer  by  them.  Any- 
thing which  weans  from  earth  and  weds  to  heaven  is  good. 
I  saw  yesterday  a  park  in  which  they  were  felling  all  the 
trees,  and  yet  there  were  the  poor  crows  building  on  elms 
that  were  marked  to  be  cut  down.  I  thought  to  myself, 
"  You  foolish  birds  to  be  building  your  nests  there,  for  the 
woodman's  axe  is  ringing  all  around  and  the  tall  elms  are 
tumbling  to  the  ground."  We  are  all  apt  to  build  our  nests 
on  trees  that  will  be  cut  down.    We  get  to  love  the  creature 


MY  (30D. 


359 


and  to  say,  "  My  this,"  and  "  My  that ; "  and  from  this 
weakness  our  sharpest  sorrows  arise.  If  you  build  nowhere 
but  on  the  tree  of  life,  which  never  can  be  felled,  if  you 
build  nowhere  but  on  the  rock  of  ages  which  can  never 
crumble,  happiness  will  be  yours  of  a  safe  and  lasting  kind  : 
but  you  can  only  do  this  by  saying  "My  God." 

Now,  I  dare  say,  there  are  some  unconverted  people  here 
who  wonder  what  we  are  making  all  this  fuss  about.  They 
have  their  own  hoarded  treasures  and  cherished  possessions, 
and  they  see  no  beauty  in  God  that  they  should  desire  him. 
No,  but  let  me  tell  you — you  who  have  no  God  and  no 
Saviour — the  day  will  come  when  you  would  give  your  eyes, 
nay,  you  would  give  your  very  lives,  if  you  could  say  "My 
God."  Men  have  been  worth  thousands  of  pounds,  and 
when  they  have  lain  a-dying  without  God  they  have  said  of 
their  gold,  "  It  will  not  do  !  "  They  have  had  their  money- 
bags brought  to  the  bed,  and  pressed  them  to  their  hearts, 
and  said,  "  They  will  not  cheer  my  soul,  they  will  not  calm 
my  spirit."  If  you  do  not  die  crying  out,  "  Woe  is  me  that 
I  die  without  God,"  yet,  at  any  rate,  after  death,  when  you 
shall  have  risen  from  the  dead,  and  you  see  the  Judge,  and 
you  stand  as  a  criminal  before'  his  bar,  you  will  think  your- 
self ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand  fools  in  one  that  you 
ever  lived  and  died  without  God  and  without  Christ.  How  will 
infinite  anguish  rend  your  heart  while  you  have  to  confess 
r  I  tried  to  gain  the  world,  but  lost  my  soul  !  I  am  a  fool 
of  the  worst  order  !  Alas  !  that  I  should  be  such  a  maniac  ! " 
0  sinner,  I  wish  you  would  go  to  Jesus.  May  God's  Spirit 
lead  you  to  Jesus  to-night.  Cry  mightily  to  God  that  he 
would  give  himself  to  you  through  Jesus  Christ  the  Saviour. 
He  will  do  it,  for  he  waiteth  to  be  gracious.  Try  him  ;  and 
God  bless  you  all,  for  Christ's  sake  !  Amen. 


SERMON  XIX. 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 

Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 
ington. 

"  But  he  answered  and  said,  It  is  not  meet  to  take  the  children's 
bread,  and  to  cast  it  to  dogs.  And  she  said,  Truth,  Lord  :  yet  the  dogs 
eat  of  the  crumbs  which  fall  from  their  masters'  table." — Matthew  xv. 
26,27. 

"  But  Jesus  said  unto  her,  Let  the  children  first  be  filled  :  for  it  is 
not  meet  to  take  the  children's  bread,  and  to  cast  it  unto  the  dogs. 
And  she  answered  and  said  unto  him,  Yes,  Lord  :  yet  the  dogs  under 
the  table  eat  of  the  children's  crumbs." — Mark  vii.  27,  28. 

I  take  the  two  records  of  Matthew  and  Mark  that  we 
may  have  the  whole  matter  before  us.  May  the  Holy  Spirit 
bless  our  meditations  thereon. 

The  brightest  jewels  are  often  found  in  the  darkest  places. 
Christ  had  not  found  such  faith,  no,  not  in  Israel,  as  he  dis- 
covered in  this  poor  Canaanitish  woman.  The  borders  and 
fringes  of  the  land  were  more  fruitful  than  the  centre,  where 
the  husbandry  had  been  more  abundant.  In  the  headlands 
of  the  field,  where  the  farmer  does  not  expect  to  grow  much 
beyond  weeds,  the  Lord  Jesus  found  the  richest  ear  of  corn 
that  as  yet  had  filled  his  sheaf.  Let  those  of  us  who  reap 
after  him  be  encouraged  to  expect  the  same  experience. 
Never  let  us  speak  of  any  district  as  too  depraved  to  yield  us 
converts,  nor  of  any  class  of  persons  as  too  fallen  to  become 
believers.    Let  us  go  even  to  the  borders  of  Tyre  and  Sidon, 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


361 


though  the  land  be  under  a  curse,  for  even  there  we  shall 
discover  some  elect  one,  ordained  to  be  a  jewel  for  the  Re- 
deemer's crown.  Our  heavenly  Father  has  children  every- 
where. 

In  spiritual  things  it  is  found  that  the  best  plants  often 
grow  in  the  most  barren  soil.  Solomon  spake  of  trees,  and 
discoursed  concerning  the  hyssop  on  the  wall  and  the  cedar 
in  Lebanon.  So  is  it  in  the  natural  world,  the  great  trees 
are  found  on  great  mountains  and  the  minor  plants  in  places 
adapted  for  their  tiny  roots  ;  but  it  is  not  so  among  the  plants 
of  the  Lord's  right  hand  planting,  for  there  we  have  seen  the 
cedar  grow  upon  the  wall — great  saints  in  places  where  it  was 
apparently  impossible  for  them  to  exist ;  and  we  have  seen 
hyssops  growing  upon  Lebanon— a  questionable,  insignificant 
piety,  where  there  have  been  innumerable  advantages.  The 
Lord  is  able  to  make  strong  faith  exist  with  little  knowledge, 
little  present  enjoyment  and  little  encouragement ;  and 
strong  faith  in  such  conditions  triumphs  and  conquers,  and 
doubly  glorifies  the  grace  of  God.  Such  was  this  Canaanitish 
woman,  a  cedar  growing  where  soil  was  scant  enough.  She 
was  a  woman  of  amazing  faith,  though  she  could  have  heard 
but  little  of  him  in  whom  she  believed,  and  perhaps  had 
never  seen  his  person  at  all  until  the  day  when  she  fell  at  his 
feet  and  said,  "Lord,  help  me  !  " 

Our  Lord  had  a  very  quick  eye  for  spying  faith.  If  the 
jewel  was  lying  in  the  mire  his  eye  caught  its  glitter,  if  there 
was  a  choice  ear  of  wheat  among  the  thorns  he  failed  not  to 
perceive  it.  Faith  has  a  strong  attraction  for  the  Lord 
Jesus  ;  at  the  sight  of  it  "  the  king  .is  held  in  the  galleries, 
thou  hast  ravished  my  heart  with  one  of  thine  eyes,  with  one 
chain  of  thy  neck."  The  Lord  Jesus  was  charmed  with  the 
fair  jewel  of  this  woman's  faith,  and  watching  it  and  delight- 
ing in  it  he  resolved  to  turn  it  round  and  set  it  in  other  lights, 
that  the.  various  facets  of  this  priceless  diamond  might  each 
one  flash  its  brilliance  and  delight  his  soul.    Therefore  he 


362 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


tried  her  faith  by  his  silence,  and  by  his  discouraging  replies, 
that  he  might  see  its  strength  ;  but  he  was  all  the  while  de- 
lighting in  it,  and  secretly  sustaining  it,  and  when  he  had 
sufficiently  tried  it,  he  brought  it  forth  as  gold,  and  set  his 
own  royal  mark  upon  it  in  these  memorable  words,  "  0 
woman,  great  is  thy  faith ;  be  it  unto  thee  even  as  thou 
wilt." 

I  am  hopeful  this  morning  that  perhaps  some  poor  soul  in 
this  place  under  very  discouraging  circumstances  may  never- 
theless be  led  to  believe  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  with  a 
strong  and  persevering  faith,  and  though  as  yet  it  enjoys  no 
peace,  and  has  seen  no  gracious  answer  to  prayer,  I  trust 
that  its  struggling  faith  may  be  strengthened  this  morning 
by  the  example  of  the  Oanaanitish  woman. 

I  gather  from  the  story  of  her  appeal  to  the  Lord  Jesus 
and  her  success  therein,  four  facts.  The  first  is,  faith's  mouth 
ca?mot  be  closed ;  the  second  is,  faith  never  disputes  ivith 
God;  thirdly,  I  perceive  that  faith  argues  mightily ;  and 
fourthly  tlmt faith  wins  her  suit. 

I.  The  mouth  of  faith  can  never  be  closed  ;  for  if 
ever  the  faith  of  a  woman  was  tried  so  as  to  make  her  cease 
from  prayer,  it  was  that  of  this  daughter  of  Tyre.  She  had 
difficulty  after  difficulty  to  encounter,  and  yet  she  could  not 
be  put  off  from  pleading  for  her  little  daughter,  because  she 
believed  in  Jesus  as  the  great  Messiah,  able  to  heal  all  man- 
ner of  diseases,  and  she  meant  to  pray  to  him  until  he  yielded 
to  her  importunity,  for  she  was  confident  that  he  could  chase 
the  demon  from  her  child. 

Observe  that  the  mouth  of  faith  cannot  be  closed  even  on 
account  of  the  closed  ear  and  the  closed  mouth  of  Christ.  He 
answered  her  never  a  word.  She  spoke  very  piteously,  she 
came  and  threw  herself  at  his  feet,  her  child's  case  was  very 
urgent,  her  motherly  heart  was  very  tender,  and  her  cries 
were  very  piercing,  and  yet  he  answered  her  never  a  word  : 
as  if  he  were  deaf  and  dumb,  he  passed  her  by  ;  yet  was  she 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


363 


not  staggered  ;  she  believed  in  him,  and  even  he  himself 
could  not  make  her  doubt  him,  let  him  try  silence  even  if  he 
would.  It  is  hard  to  believe  when  prayer  seems  to  be  a  fail- 
ure. I  would  to  God  that  some  poor  seeker  here  might  be- 
lieve that  Jesus  Christ  is  able  and  willing  to  save,  and  so  fully 
believe  it  that  his  unanswered  prayers  shall  not  be  able  to  make 
him  .doubt.  Even  if  you  should  pray  in  vain  by  the  month 
together,  do  not  allow  a  doubt  about  the  Lord  Jesus  and  his 
power  to  save  to  cross  your  mind.  What  if  you  cannot  yet 
grasp  the  peace  which  faith  must  ultimately  bring  you,  what 
if  you  have  no  certainty  of  forgiveness  of  your  sin,  what  if  no 
gleams  of  joy  should  visit  your  spirit,  yet  believe  you  him 
who  cannot  lie.  "  Though  he  slay  me,"  said  Job,  "  yet  will 
I  trust  in  him."  That  was  splendid  faith.  It  would  be  a 
great  deal  for  some  if  they  could  say,  "Though  he  smite  me, 
yet  will  I  trust  him,"  but  Job  said,  "  Though  he  slay  me." 
If  he  put  on  the  garb  of  an  executioner,  and  come  out  against 
me  as  though  he  would  destroy  me,  yet  will  I  believe  him  to 
be  full  of  love  :  he  is  good  and  gracious  still,  I  cannot  doubt 
it,  and  therefore  at  his  feet  I  will  lie  down  and  look  up,  ex- 
pecting grace  at  his  hands.  Oh  for  such  faith  as  this  !  0 
soul,  if  you  have  it,  you  are  a  saved  man,  as  sure  as  you  are 
alive.  If  even  the  Lord's  apparent  refusal  to  bless  you  cannot 
close  your  mouth,  your  faith  is  of  a  noble  sort,  and  salvation 
is  yours. 

In  the  next  place,  her  faith  could  not  be  silenced  by  the 
conduct  of.  the  disciples.  They  did  not  treat  her  well,  but  yet 
perhaps  not  altogether  ill.  They  were  not  like  their  Master, 
but  frequently  repulsed  those  who  would  come  to  him.  Her 
noise  annoyed  them,  she  kept  to  them  with  boundless  perse- 
verance, and  therefore  they  said,  "Send  her  away,  for  she 
crieth  after  us."  Poor  soul,  she  never  cried  after  them,  it 
was  after  their  Master.  Sometimes  disciples  become  very 
important  in  their  own  eyes,  and  think  that  the  pushing  and 
crowding  to  hear  the  gospel  is  caused  by  the  people's  eager- 


364 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


ness  to  hear  them,  whereas  nobody  would  care  for  their  poor 
talk  if  it  were  not  for  the  gospel  message  which  they  are 
charged  to  deliver.  Give  us  any  other  theme,  and  the  mul- 
titude would  soon  melt  away.  Though  weary  of  the  woman's 
importunate  cries,  they  acted  somewhat  kindly  toward  her, 
for  they  were  evidently  desirous  that  she  should  obtain  the 
boon  she  sought,  or  else  our  Lord's  reply  would  not  have  been 
appropriate,  "I  am  not  sent,  save  to  the  lost  sheep  of  the 
house  of  Israel."  It  was  not  her  daughter's  healing  that  they 
cared  for,  but  they  consulted  their  own  comfort,  for  they 
were  anxious  to  be  rid  of  her.  "  Send  her  away,"  said  they, 
"for  she  crieth  after  us."  Still,  though  they  did  not  treat 
her  as  men  should  treat  a  woman,  as  disciples  should  treat  a 
seeker,  as  Christians  should  treat  everybody,  yet  for  all  that, 
her  mouth  was  not  stopped.  Peter,  I  have  no  doubt,  looked 
in  a  very  scowling  manner,  and  perhaps  even  John  became 
a  little  impatient,  for  he  had  a  quick  temper  by  nature  ; 
Andrew  and  Philip  and  the  rest  of  them  considered  her  very 
impertinent  and  presumptuous  ;  but  she  thought  of  her  little 
daughter  at  home,  and  of  the  horrible  miseries  to  which  the 
demon  subjected  her,  and  so  she  pressed  up  to  the  Saviour's 
feet  and  said,  "Lord,  help  me."  Cold,  hard  words  and  un- 
kind, unsympathetic  behavior  could  not  prevent  her  plead- 
ing with  him  in  whom  she  believed.  Ah,  poor  sinner,  per- 
haps you  are  saying,  "  I  am  longing  to  be  saved,  but  such 
and  such  a  good  Christian  man  has  dealt  very  bitterly  with 
me,  he  has  doubted  my  sincerity  and  questioned  the  reality 
of  my  repentance,  and  caused  me  the  deepest  sorrow  ;  ife 
seems  as  if  he  did  not  wish  me  to  be  saved."  Ah,  dear 
friend,  this  is  very  trying,  but  if  you  have  true  faith  in  the 
Master  you  will  not  mind  us  disciples,  neither  the  gentlest 
of  us,  nor  the  most  crooked  of  us,  but  just  urge  on  your 
suit  with  your  Lord  till  he  deigns  to  give  }rou  an  answer  of 
peace. 

Her  mouth,  again,  ivas  not  closed  hy  exclusive  doctrine. 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


365 


which  appeared  to  confine  the  Messing  to  a  favored  few :  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  said,  "  I  am  not  sent  save  to  the  lost  sheep 
of  the  house  of  Israel,"  and  though  properly  understood  there 
is  nothing  very  severe  in  it,  yet  the  sentence  must  have  fallen 
on  the  woman's  heart  like  a  talent  of  lead.  "  Alas,"  she 
might  have  thought,  "  then  he  is  not  sent  to  me  ;  vainly  do 
I  seek  for  that  which  he  reserves  for  the  Jews."  Now,  the- 
doctrine  of  election,  which  is  assuredly  taught  in  Scripture, 
ought  not  to  hinder  any  soul  from  coming  to  Christ,  for  if 
properly  understood,  it  would  rather  encourage  than  discour- 
age ;  and  yet  often  to  the  uninstructed  ear  the  doctrine  of  the 
divine  choice  of  a  people  from  before  the  foundation  of  the 
world  acts  with  very  depressing  effect.  We  have  known  poor 
seekers  mournfully  say,  "  Perhaps  there  is  no  mercy  for  me  ; 
I  may  be  among  those  for  whom  no  purpose  of  mercy  has 
been  formed."  They  have  been  tempted  to  cease  from 
prayer  for  fear  they  should  not  have  been  predestinated  unto 
eternal  life.  Ah,  dear  soul,  if  you  have  the  faith  of  God's 
elect  in  you,  you  will  not  be  kept  back  by  any  self-condemn- 
ing inferences  drawn  from  the  secret  things  of  God,  but  you 
will  believe  in  that  which  has  been  clearly  revealed,  and  you 
will  be  assured  that  this  cannot  contradict  the  secret  decrees 
of  heaven.  What  though  our  Lord  was  only  sent  to  the 
house  of  Israel  yet  there  is  a  house  of  Israel  not  after  the  flesh 
but  after  the  spirit,  and  therefore  the  Syrophcenician  woman 
was  included  even  where  she  thought  she  was  shut  out,  and 
you  may  also  be  comprehended  within  those  lines  of  gracious 
destiny  which  now  distress  you.  At  any  rate  say  to  yourself, 
"  In  the  election  of  grace  others  are  included  who  were  as 
sinful  as  I  have  been,  why  should  not  I  ?  Others  have  been 
included  who  were  as  full  of  distress  as  I  have  been  on  ac- 
count of  sin,  and  why  should  not  I  be  also  ? "  Eeasoning 
thus  you  will  press  forward  ;  in  hope  believing  against  hope, 
suffering  no  plausible  deduction  from  the  doctrine  of  Scrip- 
ture to  prevent  your  believing  in  the  appointed  Redeemer. 


366 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


The  mouth  of  faith  in  this  case  was  not  even  closed  by  a 
sense  of  admitted  unworthiness.  Christ  spoke  of  dogs  :  he 
meant  that  the  Gentiles  were  to  Israel  as  the  dogs  :  she  did 
not  at  all  dispute  it,  but  yielded  the  point  by  saying,  "  Truth, 
Lord."  She  felt  she  was  only  worthy  to  be  compared  to  a 
dog.  I  have  no  doubt  her  sense  of  un worthiness  was  very 
deep.  She  did  not  expect  to  win  the  boon  she  sought  for  on 
account  of  any  merit  of  her  own ;  she  depended  upon  the 
goodness  of  Christ's  heart,  not  on  the  goodness  of  her  cause, 
and  upon  the  excellence  of  his  power  rather  than  upon  the 
prevalence  of  her  plea  ;  yet  conscious  as  she  was  that  she  was 
only  a  poor  Gentile  dog,  her  prayers  were  not  hindered ;  she 
cried,  notwithstanding  all,  Ci  Lord,  help  me."  0  sinner,  if 
thou  feelest  thyself  to  be  the  worst  sinner  out  of  hell,  still 
pray,  believingly  pray  for  mercy.  If  thy  sense  of  unworthi- 
ness  be  enough  to  drive  thee  to  self-destruction,  yet  I  beseech 
thee,  out  of  the  depths,  out  of  the  dungeon  of  self-loathing, 
still  cry  unto  God  ;  for  thy  salvation  rests  in  no  measure  or 
degree  upon  thyself,  or  upon  anything  that  thou  art  or  hast 
been  or  canst  be.  Thou  needest  to  be  saved  from  thyself,  not 
by  thyself.  It  is  thine  to  be  empty  that  Jesus  may  fill  thee  ; 
thine  to  confess  thy  filthiness  that  he  may  wash  thee  ;  thine 
to  be  less  than  nothing  that  Jesus  may  be  everything  to  thee. 
Suffer  not  the  number,  blackness,  frequency,  or  heinousness 
of  thy  transgressions  to  silence  thy  prayers,  but  though  thou 
.be  a  dog,  yea  not  worthy  to  be  set  with  the  dogs  of  the  Lord's 
flock,  yet  open  thy  mouth  in  believing  prayer. 

There  was  besides  this  a  general  tone  and  spirit  in  what 
the  Lord  Jesus  said  which  tended  to  depress  the  woman's 
hope  and  restrain  her  prayer,  yet  she  was  not  kept  bach  by  the 
darkest  and  most  depressing  influe?ices.  "It  is  not  meet," 
said  the  Lord  Jesus,  "  It  is  not  becoming,  it  is  not  proper,  it  is 
hardly  lawful,  to  take  children's  bread  and  throw  it  to  dogs." 
Perhaps  she  didn't  quite  see  all  that  he  might  have  meant, 
but  what  she  did  see  was  enough  to  pour  cold  water  upon  the 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


367 


flame  of  her  hope,  yet  her  faith  was  not  quenched.  It  was  a 
faith  of  that  immortal  kind  which  nothing  can  kill ;  for  her 
mind  was  made  up  that  whatever  Jesus  meant,  or  did  not 
mean,  she  would  not  cease  to  trust  him,  and  urge  her  suit 
with  him.  There  are  a  great  many  things  in  and  around  the 
gospel  which  men  see  as  in  a  haze,  and  being  misunderstood 
they  rather  repel  than  attract  seeking  souls  ;  but  be  they 
what  they  may  we  must  resolve  to  come  to  Jesus  at  all  risks. 
"If  I  perish,  I  perish."  Besides  the  great  stumbling-stone 
of  election  there  are  truths  and  facts  which  seekers  magnify 
and  misconstrue  till  they  see  a  thousand  difficulties.  They 
are  troubled  about  Christian  experience,  about  being  born 
again,  about  inbred  sin,  and  all  sorts  of  things  ;  in  fact  a 
thousand  lions  are  in  the  way  when  the  soul  attempts  to  come 
to  Jesus,  but  he  who  gives  Christ  the  faith  Avhich  he  deserves 
says,  "  I  fear  none  of  these  things.  Lord  help  me,  and  I  will 
still  confide  in  thee.  I  will  approach  thee,  I  will  press  through 
obstacles  to  thee,  and  throw  myself  at  thy  dear  feet,  knowing 
that  him  that  cometh  to  thee  thou  wilt  in  no  wise  cast  out." 

II.  Faith  never  disputes  with  the  Lord.  Faith  wor- 
ships. You  notice  how  Matthew  says,  "  Then  came  she  and 
worshipped  him."  Faith  also  begs  and  prays.  You  observe 
how  Mark  says,  "She  besought  him."  She  cried,  "Lord, 
help  me,"  after  having  said,  "  Have  mercy  on  me,  0  Lord, 
thou  Son  of  David."  Faith  pleads,  but  never  disputes,  not 
even  against  the  hardest  thing  that  Jesus  says.  If  faith  dis- 
puted— I  am  uttering  a  solecism — she  would  not  be  faith,  for 
that  which  disputes  is  unbelief.  Faith  in  God  implies  agree- 
ment with  what  God  says,  and  consequently  it  excludes  the 
idea  of  doubt.  Genuine  faith  believes  anything  and  every- 
thing the  Lord  says,  whether  discouraging  or  encouraging. 
She  never  has  a  "  but "  or  an  "  if,"  or  even  a  "  yet "  to  put 
in,  but  she  stands  to  it,  "Thou  hast  said  it,  Lord,  and 
therefore  it  is  true  :  thou  hast  ordained  it  Lord,  and  there- 
fore it  is  right."    She  never  goes  beyond  that. 


368 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


Observe  in  our  text  that  faith  assents  to  all  the  Lord  says. 
She  says,  "  Truth,  Lord."  What  had  he  said  ?  "You  are 
comparable  to  a  dog  I"  "  Truth,  Lord  ;  truth,  Lord  ;  so  I 
am."  "  It  would  not  be  meet  that  the  children  should  be 
robbed  of  bread  in  order  to  feed  dogs."  "Truth,  Lord,  it 
would  not  be  fitting,  and  I  would  not  have  one  of  thy  children 
deprived  of  grace  for  me."  "  It  is  not  your  time  yet,"  said 
Jesus,  "the  children  must  first  be  fed  ;  children  at  the  meal 
times  and  dogs  after  dinner  ;  this  is  Israel's  time,  and  the 
Gentiles  may  follow  after.  But  not  yet."  She  virtually 
replies,  "  I  know  it,  Lord,  and  agree  thereto." 

She  does  not  raise  a  question  or  dispute  the  justice  of  the 
Lord's  dispensing  his  own  grace  according  to  his  sovereign 
good  pleasure.  She  fails  not,  as  some  do  who  cavil  at  divine 
sovereignty.  It  would  have  proved  that  she  had  little  or  no 
faith  if  she  had  done  that.  She  disputes  not  as  to  the  Lord's 
set  time  and  order.  Jesus  said,  "  Let  the  children  first  be 
filled,"  and  she  does  not  dispute  the  time  as  many  do,  who 
will  not  have  it  that  now  is  the  accepted  time,  but  are  as 
much  for  postponing  as  this  woman  was  for  antedating  the 
day  of  grace.  She  entered  into  no  argument  against  its 
being  improper  to  take  the  covenant  bread  from  the  children 
and  give  it  to  the  uncircumcised  heathen  :  she  never  wished 
Israel  to  be  robbed  for  her.  Dog  as  she  was  she  would  not 
have  any  purpose  of  God  nor  any  propriety  of  the  divine 
household  shifted  and  changed  for  her.  She  assented  to  all 
the  Lord's  appointments.  That  is  the  faith  which  saves  the 
soul,  which  agrees  with  the  mind  of  God,  even  if  it  seem 
adverse  to  herself,  which  believes  the  revealed  declarations 
of  God  whether  they  appear  to  be  pleasant  or  terrible,  and 
assents  to  God's  word  whether  it  be  like  a  balm  to  its  wound 
or  like  a  sword  to  cut  and  slay.  If  the  word  of  God  be  true, 
0  man,  do  not  fight  against  it,  but  bow  before  it.  It  is  not 
the  way  to  a  living  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  nor  to  obtain  peace 
with  God,  to  take  up  arms  against  anything  which  God 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


369 


declares.  In  yielding  lies  safety.  Say  "  Truth,  Lord,"  and 
you  shall  find  salvation. 

Note,  that  she  not  only  assented  to  all  that  the  Lord  said, 
but  she  worshipped  him  in  it.  "  Truth,"  she  said,  "but  yet 
thou  art  my  Lord."  "Thou  callest  me  'dog,'  but  thou  art 
my  Lord  for  all  that :  thou  accountest  me  unworthy  to  receive 
thy  bounties,  but  thou  art  my  Lord,  and  I  still  own  thee  as 
such."  She  is  of  the  mind  of  Job  :  "  Shall  we  receive  good 
at  the  hand  of  the  Lord,  and  shall  we  not  receive  evil  ? " 
She  is  willing  to  take  the  evil  and  say,  "  Whether  the  Lord 
gives,  or  whether  he  refuses,  blessed  be  his  name  ;  he  is  my 
Lord  still."  Oh,  this  is  grand  faith,  which  has  thrown  aside 
the  disputatious  spirit,  and  not  only  assents  to  the  Lord's 
will,  but  worships  him  in  it.  "  Let  it  be  what  it  may,  0 
Lord,  even  if  the  truth  condemns  me,  yet  still  thou  art 
Lord,  and  I  confess  thy  deity,  confess  thy  excellence,  own 
thy  crown  rights,  and  submit  myself  to  thee  :  do  with  me 
what  thou  wilt." 

And,  you  observe,  when  she  said  "  Truth,  Lord,"  she  did 
not  go  on  to  suggest  that  any  alteration  should  be  made  for 
her.  "  Lord,"  she  said,  "  thou  hast  classed  me  among  the 
dogs  :"  she  does  not  say,  "Put  me  among  the  children,"  but 
she  only  asks  to  be  treated  as  a  dog  is.  "  The  dogs  eat  the 
crumbs,"  says  she.  She  does  not  want  a  purpose  altered  nor 
an  ordinance  changed,  nor  a  decree  removed:  "Let  it  be 
as  it  is  :  if  it  be  thy  will,  Lord,  it  is  my  will " ;  only  she 
spies  a  gleam  of  hope,  where,  if  she  had  not  possessed  faith, 
she  would  have  seen  only  the  blackness  of  despair.  •  May  we 
have  such  a  faith  as  hers,  and  never  enter  into  controversy 
with  God. 

III.  Now  I  come  to  an  interesting  part  of  our  subject, 
namely,  that  faith  akgues,  though  it  does  not  dispute. 
"Truth,  Lord,"  said  she,  "yet  the  dogs  eat  the  crumbs." 
This  woman's  argument  was  correct,  and  strictly  logical 
throughout.  It  was  an  argument  based  upon  the  Lord's 
16* 


370 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


own  premises,  and  you  know  if  you  are  reasoning  with  a  man 
you  cannot  do  better  than  take  his  own  statements  and  argue 
upon  them.  She  does  uot  proceed  to  lay  down  new  premises, 
or  dispute  the  old  ones  by  saying  "  I  am  no  dog  ;"  but  she 
says,  "Yes,  I  am  a  dog."  She  accepts  that  statement  of  the 
Lord,  and  uses  it  as  a  blessed  argumentum  ad  liominem,  such 
as  was  never  excelled  in  this  world.  She  took  the  words  out 
of  his  own  mouth,  and  vanquishes  him  with  them,  even  as 
Jacob  overcame  the  angel.  There  is  so  much  force  in  the 
woman's  argument,  that  I  quite  despair  this  morning  of 
being  able  to  set  it  all  forth  to  you.  I  would,  however,  re- 
mark that  the  translators  have  greatly  injured  the  text  by 
putting  in  the  word  "yet,"  for  there  is  no  "yet "in  the 
Greek  ;  it  is  quite  another  word.  Jesus  said,  "  It  is  not 
meet  to  take  the  children's  bread  and  cast  it  to  the  dogs." 
"No,"  said  she,  "it  would  not  be  meet  to  do  this,  because 
the  dogs  are  provided  for,  for  the  dogs  eat  the  crumbs  that 
fall  from  their  master's  table.  It  would  be  very  improper  to 
give  them  the  children's  bread,  because  they  have  bread  of 
their  own.  Truth,  Lord,  I  admit  it  would  be  improper  to 
give  the  dogs  the  children's  bread,  because  they  have  already 
their  share  when  they  eat  the  crumbs  which  fall  from  the 
children's  table.  That  is  all  they  want,  and  all  I  desire.  I 
do  not  ask  thee  to  give  me  the  children's  bread,  I  only  ask 
for  the  dog's  crumbs." 

Let  us  see  the  force  of  her  reasoning,  which  will  appear 
in  many  ways.  The  first  is  this.  She  argued  with  Christ 
from  her  hopeful  position.  "I  am  a  dog,"  said  she,  "but, 
Lord,  thou  hast  come  all  the  way  to  Sidon  ;  here  thou  art 
close  on  the  borders  of  my  country,  and  therefore  I  am  not 
like  a  dog  out  in  the  street ;  I  am  a  dog  under  the  table." 
Mark  tells  us  that  she  said,"  The  dogs  under  the  table  eat  of 
the  children's  crumbs."  She  as  good  as  says,  "Lord,  thou 
seest  my  position  :  I  was  a  dog  in  the  street,  afar  oil  from 
thee,  but  now  thou  hast  come  and  preached  in  our  borders, 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


371 


and  I  have  been  privileged  to  listen  to  thee.  Others  have 
been  healed,  and  thou  art  in  this  very  house  doing  deeds  of 
grace  while  I  look  on,  and  therefore,  though  I  am  a  dog,  I 
am  a  dog  under  the  table,  therefore,  Lord,  let  me  have  the 
crumbs."  Do  you  see,  dear  hearer  ?  You  admit  that  you 
are  a  sinner,  and  a  great  sinner,  but  you  say,  "Lord,  I  am  a 
sinner  that  is  permitted  to  hear  the  gospel,  therefore  bless  it 
to  me.  I  am  a  dog,  but  I  am  under  the  table,  deal  with  me 
as  such.  When  there  is  a  sermon  preached  for  the  comfort 
of  thy  people,  I  am  there  to  hear  it ;  whenever  the  saints 
gather  together,  and  the  precious  promises  are  discussed, 
and  they  rejoice  therein,  I  am  there,  looking  up,  and  wishing 
that  I  were  among  them,  but  still  Lord,  since  thou  hast  had 
the  grace  to  let  me  be  a  hearer  of  the  gospel,  wilt  thou  reject 
me  now  that  I  desire  to  be  a  receiver  of  it  ?  To  what  end 
and  purpose  hast  thou  brought  me  so  near,  or  rather  come  so 
near  to  me,  if  after  all  thou  wilt  reject  me  ?  Dog  I  am,  but 
still  I  am  a  dog  under  the  table.  It  is  a  favor  to  be  privi- 
leged to  be  among  the  children,  even  if  I  may  only  lie  at  their 
feet.  I  pray  thee,  good  Lord,  then,  since  now  I  am  per- 
mitted to  look  up  to  thee  and  ask  this  blessing,  do  not  reject 
me."  To  me  it  seems  that  this  was  a  strong  point  with  the 
woman,  and  that  she  used  it  well. 

Her  next  plea  was  her  encouraging  relationship.  "  Truth, 
Lord,"  she  says,  "lam  a  dog,  but  the  dogs  eat  the  crumbs 
which  fall  from  their  master's  table."  See  the  stress  laid 
there  by  Matthew  :  "From  their  master's  table."  "Ican- 
not  say  that  thou  art  my  Father,  I  cannot  look  up  and  claim 
the  privilege  of  a  child,  but  thou  art  my  Master,  and  masters 
feed  their  dogs ;  they  give  at  least  the  crumbs  to  those  dogs 
which  own  them  as  their  Lord."  The  plea  is  very  like  that 
suggested  to  the  mind  of  the  poor  returning  prodigal.  He 
thought  to  say  to  his  father,  "  Make  me  as  one  of  thy  hired 
servants"  :  only  his  faith  was  far  weaker  than  hers.  "Lord, 
if  I  do  not  stand  in  relation  to  thee  as  a  child,  yet  I  am  thy 


372 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


creature ;  thou  hast  made  me,  and  I  look  up  to  thee  and 
beseech  thee  not  to  let  me  perish  :  if  I  have  no  other  hold 
upon  thee,  I  have  at  least  this,  that  I  ought  to  have  served 
thee,  and  therefore  I  am  thy  servant  though  I  am  a  runa- 
way. I  do  belong  to  thee  at  least  under  the  covenant  of 
works,  if  I  do  not  under  the  covenant  of  grace,  and  oh,  since 
I  am  thy  servant,  do  not  utterly  reject  me.  Thou  hast  some 
property  in  me  by  creation,  at  any  rate  ;  oh,  look  upon  me 
and  bless  me.  The  dogs  eat  what  fall  from  their  master's 
table,  let  me  do  the  same."  She  spies  out  a  dog's  relation 
to  his  master,  and  makes  the  most  of  it  with  blessed  ingenu- 
ity, which  we  shall  do  well  to  imitate. 

Notice  next,  she  pleads  her  association  with  the  children. 
Here  I  must  tell  you  that  it  is  a  pity  that  it  was  not,  I  sup- 
pose, possible  for  our  translators  to  bring  clearly  out  what  is 
after  all  the  pith  of  the  passage.  She  was  pleading  for  her 
little  daughter ;  and  our  Lord  said  to  her,  "  It  is  not  meet 
to  take  the  children's  bread  and  cast  it  to  the  little  dogs." 
The  word  is  diminutive,  and  the  woman  pitched  upon  it. 
The  word  "dogs"  could  not  have  served  her  turn  one  half 
so  well  as  that  of  "little  dogs,"  but  she  said,  "Truth,  Lord, 
yet  the  little  dogs  eat  of  the  crumbs."  In  the  East,  as  a 
rule,  a  dog  is  not  allowed  in-doors ;  in  fact,  dogs  are  there 
looked  upon  as  foul  creatures,  and  roam  about  uncared  for  and 
half  wild.  Christianity  has  raised  the  dog,  and  made  him 
man's  companion,  as  it  will  raise  all  the  brute  creation,  till  the 
outrages  of  vivisection,  and  the  cruelties  of  the  vulgar,  will 
be  things  unheard  of  except  as  horrors  of  a  past  barbarous 
age.  In  the  East  the  dog  is  far  down  the  scale  of  life,  a 
street  wanderer,  prowling  for  scanty  food,  and  in  temper 
little  better  than  a  reformed  wolf.  So  the  adult  Easterns  do 
not  associate  with  dogs,  having  a  prejudice  against  them, 
but  children  are  not  so  foolish,  and  consequently  the  eastern 
children  associate  with  the  little  dogs.  The  father  will  not 
have  the  dog  near  him,  but  the  child  knows  no  such  folly, 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS.  373 

and  seeks  out  a  little  dog  to  join  him  in  his  sports  ;  thus  the 
little  dog  comes  to  be  under  the  table,  tolerated  in  the  house 
for  the  child's  sake.  The  woman  appears  to  me  to  argue 
thus — "  Thou  hast  called  me  and  my  daughter  whelps,  little 
dogs,  but  then  the  little  dogs  are  under  the  children's  table  ; 
they  associate  with  the  children,  even  as  I  have  been  with 
thy  disciples  to-day.  If  I  am  not  one  of  them,  I  have  been 
associating  with  them,  and  would  be  glad  to  be  among 
them."  How  heartily  do  I  wish  that  some  poor  soul  would 
catch  at  this  and  say  "  Lord,  I  cannot  claim  to  be  one  of  thy 
children,  but  I  love  to  sit  among  them,  for  I  am  never  hap- 
pier than  when  I  am  with  them.  Sometimes  they  trouble 
and  distress  me,  as  little  children  pinch  and  hurt  their  little 
dogs,  but  oftentimes  they  caress  me,  and  speak  kindly  and 
comfortably  to  me,  and  pray  for  me,  and  desire  my  salva- 
tion ;  so  Lord,  if  I  am  not  a  child,  yet  thou  callest  me  a 
little  dog  ;  so  I  am,  but  give  me  a  little  dog's  treatment ; 
give  me  the  crumbs  of  mercy  which  I  seek." 

His  argument  goes  further,  for  the  little  dog  eats  the  crumbs 
of  the  children's  tread  with  the  child's  full  consent.  When  a 
child  has  its  little  dog  to  play  with  while  he  is  eating,  what 
does  the  child  do  ?  Why,  of  course,  it  gives  a  little  bit  to 
the  dog  every  now  and  again,  and  the  doggie  himself  takes 
great  liberties  and  helps  himself  as  much  as  he  dares.  When 
-a  little  dog  is  with  the  children  at  meal  time  it  is  sure  to  get 
a  crumb  from  one  or  other  of  its  plaj^mates  ;  and  none  will 
object  to  its  eating  what  it  can  get.  So  the  woman  seems  to 
say,  "  Lord,  there  are  the  children,  thy  disciples  ;  they  do 
not  treat  me  very  well ;  little  children  do  not  treat  little 
dogs  always  so  kindly  as  they  might ;  but  still,  Lord,  they 
are  quite  willing  that  I  should  have  the  blessing  I  am  seek- 
ing. They  have  a  full  portion  in  thee  ;  they  have  thy  pres- 
ence :  they  have  thy  word  :  they  sit  at  thy  feet  :  they  have 
obtained  all  sorts  of  spiritual  blessings  :  I  am  sure  they 
cannot  grudge  me  so  much  less  a  boon ;  they  are  willing 


374 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


that  I  should  have  the  devil  cast  out  of  my  daughter,  for 
that  blessing  compared  with  what  they  have  is  but  a  crumb, 
and  they  are  content  that  I  should  have  it.  So  Lord,  I 
answer  thine  argument.  Thou  sayest  it  is  not  meet  until 
the  children  are  filled  to  give  bread  to  the  dogs,  but,  Lord, 
the  children  are  filled  and  are  quite  willing  to  let  me  have 
my  portion,  they  consent  to  allow  me  the  crumbs  :  wilt  thou 
not  give  them  to  me  ?" 

I  think  there  was  another  point  of  force  in  her  plea  :  It 
was  this,  the  abundance  of  the  'provision.  She  had  a  great 
faith  in  Christ,  and  believed  big  things  of  him,  and  therefore 
she  said,  "  Lord,  there  is  no  great  strength  in  thine  argument 
if  thou  dost  intend  to  prove  that  I  ought  not  to  have  the 
bread  for  fear  there  should  not  be  enough  for  the  children, 
for  thou  hast  so  much  that  even  while  the  children  are  being 
fed  the  dogs  may  get  the  crumbs,  and  there  will  be  enough 
for  the  children  still."  Where  it  is  a  poor  man's  table,  and 
he  cannot  afford  to  lose  a  crumb,  dogs  should  not  be  allowed  ; 
but  when  it  is  a  king's  table  where  bread  is  of  small  account, 
and  the  children  are  sitting  and  feeding  to  the  full,  the  little 
dogs  may  be  permitted  to  feed  under  the  table  for  the  mere 
droppings — not  the  bread  the  master  casts  down,  but  the 
orumbs  which  fall  by  accident  are  so  many  that  there  is 
enough  for  the  dogs  without  the  children  being  deprived  of  a 
mouthful.  "  No,  Lord,"  said  she,  "  I  would  not  have  thee 
take  away  the  bread  from  thine  own  children.  God  forbid 
that  such  a  deed  should  be  done  for  me  ;  but  there  is  enough 
for  thy  children  in  thine  overflowing  love  and  mercy,  and 
still  enough  for  me,  for  all  I  ask  is  but  a  crumb  compared 
with  what  thou  art  daily  bestowing  upon  others." 

Now,  here  is  the  last  point  in  which  her  argument  had 
force.  She  looked  at  things  from  Christ 's  point  of  view.  "  If, 
great  Lord,"  said  she,  "  thou  lookest  at  me  as  a  dog,  then  be- 
hold I  humbly  take  thee  at  thy  word,  and  plead  if  I  be  a  dog  to 
thee  then  the  cure  I  ask  for  my  daughter  is  but  a  crumb  for 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


375 


thy  great  power  and  goodness  to  bestow  on  me."  She  used  a 
diminutive  word  too,  and  said,  "  A  little  crumb."  The  little 
dogs  eat  of  the  little  crumbs  which  fall  from  the  children's  table. 
What  bold  faith  this  was  !  She  valued  the  mercy  she  sought 
beyond  all  price  ;  she  thought  it  worth  ten  thousand  worlds 
to  her,  and  yet  to  the  Son  of  God  she  knew  it  to  be  a  mere 
crumb,  so  rich  is  he  in  power  to  heal  and  so  full  of  goodness 
and  blessing.  If  a  man  give  a  crumb  to  a  dog  he  has  a  lit- 
tle the  less,  but  if  Jesus  gives  mercy  to  the  greatest  of  sin- 
ners he  has  none  the  less,  he  is  just  as  rich  in  condescension 
and  mercy  and  power  to  forgive  as  he  was  before.  The 
woman's  argument  was  most  potent.  She  was  as  wise  as  she 
was  earnest,  and  best  of  all,  she  believed  most  marvellously. 

I  shall  close  this  outline  of  the  argument  by  saying  that 
at  bottom  the  woman  was,  in  reality  arguing  according  to 
the  eternal  purpose  of  God  ;  for  what  was  the  Lord's  grand 
design  in  giving  the  bread  to  the  children,  or,  in  other 
words,  sending  a  divine  revelation  to  Israel  ?  Why,  it  always 
was  his  purpose  that  through  the  children  the  dogs  should  get 
the  bread  :  that  through  Israel  the  gospel  should  be  handed 
to  the  Gentiles.  It  had  always  been  his  plan  to  bless  his 
own  heritage  that  his  way  might  be  known  upon  earth, 
his  saving  health  amoug  all  nations  ;  and  this  woman  some- 
how or  other,  by  a  divine  instinct,  fell  into  the  divine 
method.  Though  she  had  not  spied  out  the  secret,  or  at 
least  it  is  not  told  us  that  she  did  so  in  so  many  words,  yet 
there  was  the  innate  force  of  her  argument.  In  other  words 
it  ran  thus — "It  is  through  the  children  that  the  dogs  have 
to  be  fed  ;  Lord,  I  do  not  ask  thee  to  cease  giving  the  chil- 
dren their  bread ;  nor  do  I  even  ask  thee  to  hurry  on  the 
children's  meal ;  let  them  be  fed  first,  but  even  while  they 
are  eating  let  me  have  the  crumbs  which  drop  from  their 
well-filled  hands,  and  I  will  be  content."  There  is  a  brave 
argument  for  you,  poor  coming  sinner.  I  leave  it  in  your 
hands,  and  pray  the  Spirit  of  God  to  help  you  to  use  it, 


376 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


and  if  you  turn  it  to  good  account  you  shall  prevail  with  the 
Lord  this  day. 

IV.  Our  last  and  closing  head  is  this  :  faith  wins  her 
suit.  This  woman's  faith  first  won  a  commendation  for 
itself.  Jesus  said,  "  0,  woman,  great  is  thy  faith."  She 
had  not  heard  of  the  prophecies  concerning  Jesus  ;  she  was 
not  bred  and  born  and  educated  in  a  way  in  which  she  was 
likely  to  become  a  believer,  and  yet  did  become  a  believer  of 
'  the  first  class.  It  was  marvellous  that  it  should  be  so,  but 
grace-delights  in  doing  wonders.  She  had  not  seen  the  Lord 
before  in  her  life,  she  was  not  like  those  who  had  associated 
with  him  for  many  months  :  and  yet,  with  but  one  view 
of  him,  she  gained  this  great  faith.  It  was  astonishing, 
but  the  grace  of  God  is  always  astonishing.  Perhaps  she 
had  never  seen  a  miracle  :  all  that  her  faith  had  to  rest  upon 
was  that  she  had  heard  in  her  own  country  that  the  Messiah 
of  the  Jews  was  come,  and  she  believed  that  the  Man  of 
Nazareth  was  he,  and  on  this  she  relied.  0  brethren,  with 
all  our  advantages,  with  the  opportunities  that  we  have 
of  knowing  the  whole  life  of  Christ,  and  understanding 
the  doctrines  of  the  gospel  as  they  are  revealed  to  us  in  the 
New  Testament,  with  many  years  of  observation  and  experi- 
ence, our  faith  ought  to  be  much  stronger  than  it  is.  Does 
not  this  poor  woman  shame  us  when  we  see  her  with  her 
slender  opportunities  nevertheless  so  strong  in  faith,  so  that 
Jesus  himself  commending  her  says,  "  0  woman,  great  is 
thy  faith." 

But  her  faith  prevailed  further,  that  it  won  a  commenda- 
tion for  the  mode  of  its  action,  for,  according  to  Mark,  J esus 
said,  "  Go  thy  way  ;  for  this  saying  the  devil  is  gone  out 
of  thy  daughter ; "  as  if  he  rewarded  the  saying  as  well 
as  the  faith  which  suggested  it.  He  was  so  delighted  with 
the  wise,  and  prudent,  and  humble  yet  courageous  manner 
in  which  she  turned  his  words  against  himself,  that  he  said, 
"For  this  saying  the  devil  is  gone  out  of  thy  daughter.' 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS 


377 


The  Lord  who  commends  faith  afterwards  commends  the 
fruits  and  acts  of  faith.  The  tree  consecrates  the  fruit. 
No  man's  actions  can  be  acceptable  with  G-od  till  he  himself 
is  accepted,  but  the  woman  having  been  accepted  on  her 
faith,  the  results  of  her  faith  were  agreeable  to  the  heart 
of  Jesus. 

The  woman  also  gained  her  desire :  "  The  devil  is  gone 
out  of  thy  daughter,"  and  he  was  gone  at  once.  She  had 
only  to  go  home  and  find  her  daughter  on  the  bed  taking 
a  quiet  rest,  which  she  had  not  done  since  the  demon  had 
possessed  her.  .  Our  Lord,  when  he  gave  her  the  desire  of 
her  heart  gave  it  in  a  grand  manner,  he  gave  her  a  sort 
of  carte  blanche,  and  said,  "Be  it  unto  thee  even  as  thou 
wilt."  I  do  not  know  that  any  other  person  ever  had  such  a 
word  said  to  him  as  this  woman,  "  Be  it  unto  thee  even 
as  thou  wilt."  It  was  as  if  the  Lord  of  glory  surrendered 
at  discretion  to  the  conquering  arms  of  a  woman's  faith.  The 
Lord  grant  to  you  and  me  in  all  times  of  our  struggling  to 
be  able  thus  by  faith  still  to  conquer,  and  we  cannot  imagine 
how  great  will  be  the  spoil  which  we  shall  divide  when  the 
Lord  shall  say,  "  Be  it  unto  thee  even  as  thou  wilt." 

The  close  of  all  is  this  :  this  woman  is  a  lesson  to  all  out- 
siders, to  you  who  think  yourselves  beyond  the  pale  of  hope, 
to  you  who  were  not  brought  up  to  attend  the  house  of  G-od, 
who  perhaps  have  been  negligent  of  religion  for  almost  all 
your  -lifetime.  This  poor  woman  is  a  Sidonian  ;  she  comes 
of  a  race  that  had  been  condemned  to  die  many  centuries 
before,  one  of  the  accursed  seed  of  Canaan,  and  yet  for  all 
that  she  became  great  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven  because  she 
believed,  and  there  is  no  reason  why  those  who  are  reckoned 
to  be  quite  outside  the  church  of  God  should  not  be  in  the 
very  centre  of  it,  and  be  the  most  burning  and  shining  lights 
of  the  whole.  0  you  poor  outcasts  and  far  off  ones,  take 
heart  and  comfort,  and  come  to  Jesus  Christ  and  trust  your- 
selves in  his  hands. 


378 


THE  LITTLE  DOGS. 


This  woman  is  next  of  all  an  example  to  those  who  think 
they  have  been  repulsed  in  their  endeavors  after  salvation. 
Have  you  been  praying,  and  have  you  not  succeeded  ?  Have 
you  sought  the  Lord,  and  do  you  seem  to  be  more  unhappy 
than  ever  ?  Have  you  made  attempts  at  reformation  and 
amendment,  and  believed  that  you  made  them  in  the  divine 
strength,  and  have  they  failed  ?  Yet  trust  in  him  whose 
blood  has  not  lost  its  efficacy,  whose  promise  has  not  lost  its 
truth,  and  whose  arm  has  not  lost  its  power  to  save.  Cling 
to  the  cross,  sinner.  If  the  earth  sink  beneath  thee,  cling 
on  ;  if  storms  should  rage,  and  all  the  floods  be  out,  and 
even  God  himself  seem  to  be  against  thee,  cling  to  the  cross. 
There  is  thy  hope.    Thou  canst  not  perish  there. 

This  is  a  lesson,  next,  to  every  intercessor.  This  woman 
was  not  pleading  for  herself,  she  was  asking  for  another.  Oh, 
when  you  plead  for  a  fellow  sinner  do  not  do  it  in  a  cold- 
hearted  manner ;  plead  as  for  your  own  soul  and  your  own 
life.  That  man  will  prevail  with  God  as  an  intercessor  who 
solemnly  bears  the  matter  upon  his  own  heart  and  makes  it 
his  own,  and  with  tears  entreats  an  answer  of  peace. 

Lastly,  recollect  that  this  mighty  woman,  this  glorious 
woman,  is  a  lesson  to  every  mother,  for  she  was  pleading  for 
her  little  daughter.  Maternal  instinct  makes  the  weakest 
strong,  and  the  most  timid  brave.  Even  among  poor  beasts 
and  birds,  how  powerful  is  a  mother's  love.  Why,  the  poor 
little  robin  which  would  be  frightened  at  the  approach  of 
a  footstep,  will  sit  upon  its  nest  when  the  intruder  comes 
near  when  her  little  ones  are  in  danger.  A  mother's  love 
makes  her  heroic  for  her  child ;  and  so  when  you  are  plead- 
ing with  God  plead  as  a  mother's  love  suggests  to  you,  till 
the  Lord  shall  say  to  you  also,  "  0  woman,  great  is  thy 
faith ;  the  devil  is  gone  out  of  thy  daughter  ;  be  it  unto  thee 
even  as  thou  wilt."  I  leave  that  last  thought  with  parents 
as  an  encouragement  to  pray.  The  Lord  stir  you  up  to  it, 
for  Jesus'  sake.  Amen. 


SERMON  XX. 


iENEAS. 

Delivered  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  New- 
ington, 

"And  it  came  to  pass  as  Peter  passed  throughout  all  quarters,  he 
came  down  also  to  the  saints  which  dwelt  at  Lydda.  And  there  he  found 
a  certain  man  named  iEneas,  which  had  kept  his  bed  eight  years,  and 
was  sick  of  the  palsy.  And  Peter  said  unto  him,  iEneas,  Jesus  Christ 
maketh  thee  whole  :  arise,  and  make  thy  bed.  And  he  arose  immedi- 
ately. And  all  that  dwelt  in  Lydda  and  Saron  saw  him,  and  turned  to 
the  Lord." — Acts  ix.  33-35. 

I  may  not  hope  that  I  shall  see  you  all  again,  and  so,  as  I 
have  the  opportunity  of  only  preaching  one  sermon  to  you,  I 
must  make  it  as  full  as  I  can  of  essence  of  gospel,  from  begin- 
ning to  end.  We  have  heard  of  a  chaplain  who  preached  in 
a  jail",  who  selected  a  subject  which  he  divided  into  two 
heads.  The  first  part  was  the  sinner's  disease  ;  this  he  took 
for  his  topic  on  one  Sabbath,  and  closed  the  sermon  by 
saying  that  he  would  preach  upon  the  sinner's  remedy  upon 
the  following  Sunday.  Now,  there  were  several  of  the 
prisoners  hanged  on  the  Monday,  according  to  the  custom 
of  the  bad  old  times,  so  that  they  did  not  hear  that  part 
of  the  discourse  which  it  was  most  necessary  for  them  to 
hear.  It  would  have  been  well  to  have  told  out  the  great 
news  of  salvation  at  once  to  men  so  near  their  end,  and  1 
think  that  in  every  sermon,  if  the  preacher  confines  himself 


380 


J2NEAS. 


to  one  subject,  and  leaves  out  essential  gospel  truth,  under 
the  notion  that  he  will  preach  salvation  by  Jesus  another 
day,  he  is  very  unwise,  for  some  of  his  congregation  may  be 
dead  and  gone — alas,  some  of  them  lost — before  he  will  have 
the  opportunity  of  coming  to  the  grand  and  all-important 
point,  namely,  the  way  of  salvation.  We  will  not  fall  into 
that  evil  to-night.  We  will  try  to  shoot  at  the  very  centre 
of  our  target,  and  preach  the  plan  of  salvation  as  completely 
as  we  can  ;  and  may  God  grant  that  his  blessing  may  rest  on 
it,  the  Holy  Spirit  working  with  it. 

I  shall  only  preach  this  one  sermon  to  some  of  you  :  you 
will,  therefore,  have  the  greater  patience  with  me,  as  I  shall 
not  inflict  myself  upon  you  again  :  but,  if  we  are  to  have  only 
one  communication  with  each  other,  let  us  come  to  real  prac- 
tical business  and  waste  no  time  to-night.  A  good  deal  of 
sermon-hearing  is  mere  trifling  ;  let  us  come  to  matter-of- 
fact  preaching  and  hearing  at  this  time.  I  am  afraid  that 
some  sermon-preaching  is  playing  too — fine  words  and  ora- 
torical fire-works,  but  no  agony  for  souls.  We  mean  busi- 
ness to-night.  My  heart  will  not  be  satisfied  unless  many  of 
you  who  came  in  here  without  Christ  shall  go  down  those 
steps  saved  by  his  atoning  blood.  Bitter  will  be  my  disap- 
pointment if  many  do  not  lay  hold  of  Jesus,  and  realize 
in  their  own  souls  Peter's  words,  "  Jesus  Christ  maketh  thee 
whole."  I  have  faith  in  the  great  Physician  that  many  of 
you  will  go  away  whole  to-night,  though  sin-sick  when  you 
came  into  this  house  of  prayer.  Much  supplication  has  gone 
up  to  heaven  for  this,  and  the  Lord  heareth  prayer ;  and 
therefore  do  I  reckon  that  miracles  of  healing  will  surely 
be  wrought  in  this  house  on  this  occasion. 

To  the  point,  then.  Peter  came  to  Lydda,  and  found 
one  who  bore  the  classic  name  of  iEneas  :  no  mighty  war- 
rior, but  a  poor  paralyzed  man,  who  had  been  confined  to 
his  bed  for  eight  long  years.  Touched  with  a  sight  of  the 
man's  feebleness,  Peter  felt  the  impulse  of  the  Spirit  upon 


J2NEAS. 


381 


him  ;  and,  looking  at  him  as  he  lay  there,  he  said,  "iEneas, 
Jesus  Christ  maketh  thee  whole  :  arise,  and  make  thy  bed." 
Touched  by  the  same  Spirit  who  inspired  the  apostle,  the 
man  believed  the  message, — believed  that  Christ  had  healed 
him,  at  oDee  rose  and  made  his  bed,  and  in  an  instant  was 
perfectly  restored.  Now  let  us  hear  something  about  this 
man.  We  are  not  to  hear  Virgil  sing,  "  arms  and  the  man," 
but  we  are  to  let  Luke  tell  us  of  the  man  and  his  Saviour. 

I.  In  the  first  place,  then,  it  is  very  clear  that  the  max 
was  truly  sick.  Had  he  not  been  really  sick,  the  incident 
before  us  would  have  been  all  a  piece  of  imposture — a  feint 
and  a  pretence  from  beginning  to  end  :  but  he  was  hopelessly 
infirm.  He  had  been  anxiously  watched  by  his  friends  for 
eight  years,  and  was  so  completely  palsied,  that  during  all 
those  years  he  had  not  left  his  bed,  which  had  grown  as 
hard  as  a  stone  beneath  him.  Now,  as  there  is  no  room  for 
a  great  cure  unless  there  is  a  great  sickness,  so  there  is  no 
room  for  God's  great  grace  unless  there  is  great  sin.  Jesus 
Christ  did  not  come  into  the  world  to  save  sham  sinners,  but 
real  sinners  ;  neither  did  he  descend  from  heaven  to  seek 
those  who  are  not  diseased  with  sin,  for  the  whole  have  no 
need  of  a  physician,  but  he  has  come  to  seek  those  who  are 
deeply  diseased,  and  to  give  them  real  healing.  This  man's 
sickness  was  no  imaginary  ill,  for  he  could  not  move  ;  his 
hands  and  feet  were  quite  paralyzed.  If  in  any  limb  there 
was  a  measure  of  motion,  it  was  only  a  tremulous  quiver, 
which  rather  indicated  growing  weakness  than  remaining 
force.  He  was  bereaved  of  all  strength.  Are  you  such  by 
nature,  my  friend,  in  a  spiritual  sense  ?  Certainly  you  are 
so ;  but  have  you  found  it  out  ?  Has  the  Spirit  of  God 
made  you  feel  that  you  can  do  nothing  aright  apart  from 
him,  and  that  you  are  altogether  ruined  and  palsied  unless 
Jesus  Christ  can  save  you  ?  If  so,  do  not  despair  because 
you  feel  how  terribly  your  soul  is  smitten  ;  but,  on  the  con- 
trary, say  to  yourself,  "  Here  is  room  for  mercy  in  me.  If 


382 


J5NEAS. 


ever  a  soul  wanted  healing,  I  do.  Here  is  space  for  divine 
power  to  operate  in  me,  for  if  ever  a  soul  was  weak  and 
palsied,  I  am  just  the  soul."  Be  thou  cheered  with  the 
hope  that  God  will  make  of  thine  infirmity  a  platform  upon 
which  he  will  display  his  power. 

The  man  had  been  paralyzed  eight  years.  The  length  of 
its  endurance  is  a  terrible  element  in  a  disease.  Perhaps 
yours  is  no  eight  years'  malady,  but  twenty-eight,  or  thirty- 
eight,  or  forty-eight,  or  seventy-eight,  perhaps  eighty-eight 
years  have  you  been  in  bondage  under  it.  Well,  blessed  be 
God,  the  number  of  years  in  which  we  have  lived  in  sin  can- 
not prevent  the  mercy  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus  from  making 
us  whole.  You  have  a  very  long  bill  to  discharge,  while 
another  friend  has  but  a  short  one,  and  owes  comparatively 
little  ;  it  is  just  as  easy  for  the  creditor  to  write  "paid"  at 
the  bottom  of  the  large  bill  as  the  small  one.  And  now 
that  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  has  made  full  atonement  it  is 
as  easy  for  God  to  pardon  the  iniquities  of  eighty  years  as 
the  sins  of  the  child  of  eight.  Be  not  despairing,  then. 
Jesus  Christ  can  make  such  as  thou  art  whole,  even  though 
thy  heart  and  thine  understanding  have  long  been  paralyzed 
with  sin. 

The  man's  disease  was  one  which  was  then  reckoned  to 
be,  and  probably  is  now,  entirely  incurable.  Who  can 
restore  a  palsied  man  ?  iEneas  could  not  restore  himself, 
and  no  merely  human  physician  had  skill  to  do  anything  for 
him.  Dear  hearer,  has  the  Spirit  of  God  made  you  feel  that 
your  soul's  wound  is  incurable  ?  Is  your  heart  sick  ?  Is 
your  understanding  darkened  ?  Do  you  feel  your  whole 
nature  to  have  become  paralyzed  with  sin,  and  is  there  no 
physician  ?  Ah,  I  know  there  is  none  among  men,  for  there 
is  no  balm  in  Gilead,  there  is  no  physician  there  ;  there  never 
was,  or  else  the  daughter  of  my  people  would  have  been  healed 
of  her  hurt  long  ago.  There  is  no  soul  physician  except  at 
Calvary  ;  no  balm  but  in  the  Saviour's  wounds.    If  you  feel 


JSNEAS.  3S3 

that  you  are  incurably  soul-sick,  and  the  case  is  desperate 
unless  infinite  mercy  shall  interpose,  then  I  am  glad  that 
you  are  here  to-night.  I  am  glad  that  there  is  such  a  one  as 
JEne&s  present.  Do  you  know  that  the  most  delightful  task 
in  the  world  is  to  preach  to  those  who  consciously  need  the 
Saviour  ?  Mr.  Whitfield  used  to  say  that  he  could  wish  to 
preach  all  day  and  all  night  long  to  those  who  really  knew  that 
they  wanted  Christ.  We  are  bound  to  preach  to  everybody, 
for  our  Master  said,  "  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature  " 
under  heaven  ;  but,  oh,  when  we  get  at  a  knot  of  hungry 
souls  it  is  easy  and  pleasant  work  to  feed  them  with  the 
bread  of  heaven;  and  when  hearts  are  thirsty  it  is  sweet 
work  to  hand  out  the  living  water,  for  they  are  all  eager  to 
take  it.  You  know,  the  great  difficulty  is  that  you  can  bring 
a  horse  to  the  water,  but  you  cannot  make  him  drink  if  he 
is  not  thirsty  ;  and  so  you  may  set  Jesus  Christ  before  men, 
but  if  they  do  not  feel  their  need  of  him  they  will  not  have 
him.  You  may  preach  in  tones  of  thunder,  or  plead  with  ac- 
cents of  intense  affection,  but  you  cannot  stir  them  to  desire 
the  grace  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus,  unless  they  feel  their 
need  of  it.  Oh,  I  am  happy  to-night — thrice  happy — if 
anywhere  in  this  house  there  is  an  JEneas  who  is  sick,  and 
knows  that  he  is  sick  ;  who  knows  his  disease  to  be  incura- 
ble, laments  that  he  is  palsied  and  can  do  nothing,  and  longs 
to  be  healed  by  divine  power.  He  is  the  man  who  will  wel- 
come the  glad  news  of  the  gospel  of  free  grace.  The  man 
was  really  sick,  and  so  are  you,  my  hearer ;  your  sins  are 
great,  your  sinfulness  of  nature  is  grievous,  and  your  case  is 
beyond  reach  of  human  skill. 

II.  In  the  second  place,  this  man,  ^Eneas,  knew  some- 
thing about  Jesus  ;  because,  otherwise,  when  Peter  said, 
"  Jesus  Christ  maketh  thee  whole,"  JSneas  might  have 
earnestly  inquired  what  he  meant,  but  could  not  intelligently 
have  acted  upon  what  he  could  not  comprehend.  He  could 
not  have  believed  what  Peter  said,  because  he  would  not  have 


384 


J5NEA8. 


understood  his  meaning.  Mere  words,  unless  they  appeal 
to  the  understanding,  cannot  be  useful  ;  they  must  convey 
light  as  well  as  sound,  or  they  cannot  breed  faith.  When 
Peter  said,  "iEneas,  Jesus  Christ  maketh  thee  whole," 
I  have  no  doubt  that  iEneas  remembered  what  he  had 
aforetime  heard  about  Jesus  Christ,  and  his  wondrous  life 
and  death.  Now,  lest  there  should  be  one  in  this  congrega- 
tion who  does  not  know  Jesus  Christ,  and  does  not  under- 
stand how  it  is  that  he  is  able  to  heal  sin-sick  souls,  let  us 
briefly  tell  the  old,  old  story  over  again. 

' '  Jesus  Christ,"  translated  into  English  means  a  "  Saviour 
anointed."  Who  is  he  ?  He  is  the  Son  of  the  Highest,  very  1 
God  of  very  God  ;  and  when  we  were  lost  in  sin  he  who  is  | 
called  the  Son  of  God  laid  aside  his  most  divine  array,  and  1 
came  hither  to  be  dressed  like  ourselves  in  this  poor  flesh  ( 
and  blood  ;  in  the  manger  he  lay  as  an  infant,  and  on  a  1 
woman's  breast  he  hung  a  feeble  babe.  The  God  who  i 
stretched  forthv  the  heavens  like  a  tent  to  dwell  in,  and  1 
digged  the  deep  foundations  of  the  earth,  came  down  to  c 
earth  to  take  upon  himself  our  nature  and  to  be  born  of  I 
a  woman.  Ob,  matchless  stoop  of  unbounded  condescension  I 
that  the  Infinite  should  be  an  infant,  and  the  Eternal  God  tl 
should  conceal  himself  within  the  form  of  a  babe.  This  i 
marvel  was  performed  that  we  might  be  saved.  Being  here,  si 
the  Lord  of  angels  lived  some  thirty  years  or  so  amongst  & 
men  ;  he  spent  the  earliest  part  of  his  life  as  a  carpenter's  it 
son  obedient  to  his  father,  and  he  was  throughput  the  whole  m 
of  his  earthly  sojourn  obedient  to  his  father,  God.  Inasmuch  CI 
as  we  had  no  righteousness,  for  we  had  broken  the  law,  he  h 
was  here  to  make  a  righteousness  for  us,  and  he  did  so.  But  go 
there  was  also  wanted  an  atonement,  for  we  had  sinned,  it 
and  God's  judgment  demanded  that  there  should  be  punish-  lie 
ment  for  sin  :  Jesus  stepped  in  as  the  Surety  and  the  Substi-  tin 
tute  for  the  guilty  sons  of  men.  He  bared  his  back  to  the  thi 
lash  of  justice,  and  opened  his  breast  to  her  lance,  and  died  bel 


.ENEAS. 


385 


that  sinners  might  live.  The  just  for  the  unjust,  he  died 
that  he  might  bring  us  to  God  : — 

'  He  bore,  that  we  might  never  bear, 
His  Father's  righteous  ire." 

Now,  when  he  had  thus  lived  and  died,  they  placed  his 
body  in  the  tomb,  but  he  rose  again  on  the  third  day, 
and  he  is  yet  alive ;  and  by  this  man  Christ  Jesus,  who 
is  risen  from  the  dead,  is  preached  unto  the  nations  the 
remission  of  sins.  For  after  forty  days  this  same  Jesus,  who 
had  been  dead  and  buried,  rose  into  the  heavens  in  the 
presence  of  his  disciples,  ascending  till  a  cloud  concealed 
him  from  their  sight,  and  he  now  sits  at  the  right  hand 
of  God,  even  the  Father,  pleading  there  the  merit  of  his 
blood,  making  intercession  for  sinners  that  they  may  be 
reconciled  to  God.  Now,  brethren,  this  is  the  story  that  we 
have  to  tell  you,  with  the  addition  that  this  same  Jesus  is 
coming  again  to  judge  the  quick  and  the  dead,  for  he  is 
Lord  of  all.  He  is  at  this  hour  the  Mediator  appointed  by 
the  infinitely  glorious  Jehovah,  having  power  over  all  flesh 
that  he  may  give  eternal  life  to  as  many  as  Jehovah  hath 
given  him,  and  this  we  beseech  you  to  consider,  lest  when  he 
somes  as  a  judge  you  should  be  condemned  at  his  bar. 
^Eneas  had  heard  more  or  less  of  these  great  facts.  The 
story  of  the  incarnate  God  had  come  to  his  ears  by  some 
means  or  otjier,  and  iEneas  understood  that  though  Jesus 
Christ  was  not  in  the  room,  and  there  was  only  Peter  and  a 
few  friends,  and  though  Jesus  Christ  was  not  on  earth,  but 
gone  to  heaven,  yet  his  power  on  earth  was  the  same  as  ever 
it  was.-  He  knew  that  Jesus  could  work  miracles  from 
heaVen  as  well  as  when  he  was  here  below.  He  understood 
that  he  who  healed  the  palsy  when  he  was  here,  could  heal 
the  palsy  now  that  he  has  risen  to  his  throne  ;  and  so  iEneas 
believed  in  Jesus  Christ  from  what  he  had  heard,  simply 
17 


366 


JSNEAS. 


trusting  in  him  for  healing.  By  means  of  that  faith  ^Eneas 
was  made  whole. 

I  will  very  earnestly  dwell  on  that  point  for  a  second 
or  two.  I  am  persuaded  that  in  this  congregation  all  of 
you  know  the  story  of  Jesus  Christ  crucified.  You  have 
heard  it  on  the  Sabbath  from  the  pulpit.  Your  children 
sing  it  when  they  come  home  from  the  Sunday  School. 
You  have  a  Bible  in  every  house,  and  you  read  the  "  old, 
old  story  "  in  the  plain  but  sublime  language  of  our  noble 
version  ;  but,  oh,  if  you  have  heard  it  and  know  it,  how  is  it 
that  you  have  not  drawn  from  it  the  same  inference  that 
this  poor  paralyzed  man  did  ?  How  is  it  that  ye  have  no 
faith  ?  Jesus  lives,  he  sits  on  Zion's  hill,  he  receives  poor 
sinners  still.  Jesus  lives  "  exalted  on  high  to  be  a  Prince 
and  a  Saviour,  to  give  repentance  unto  Israel  and  remission 
of  sins."  He  can  heal  you  now,  and  save  you  now  as  well  as 
if  you  met  him  in  the  street,  or  saw  him  standing  at  your 
door  knocking  for  admittance.  I  would  to  God  that  this 
inference  were  drawn  by  you  all. 

III.  We  have  got  so  far  :  the  man  was  sick,  and  the  man 
knew  something  about  Christ.  And  now  came  the  most 
important  point  of  all  :  the  man  relieved  ok  the  Lord 
Jesus. 

Peter  said  to  him,  "iEneas,  Jesus  Christ  maketh  thee 
whole."  The  man  did  not  believe  in  Peter  as  the  healer,  for 
vou  notice  Peter  does  not  say  anything  about  himself. 
Peter  does  not  say,  "As  the  head  of  the  church,  I,  by 
power  delegated  to  me,  make  thee  whole."  There  is  no 
allusion  to  any  such  claim  ;  Peter  preached  too  clear  a  gospel 
for  that.  That  is  the  purest  gospel  which  has  the  least 
of  man  in  it,  and  the  most  of  Christ.  I  charge  you,  men 
and  brethren,  do  not  listen  to  that  teaching  which  sets  the 
priest  in  front  of  the  Saviour,  or  even  by  the  side  of  the 
Saviour,  for  it  is  false  and  ruinous.  Your  forefathers, 
Englishmen,  your  forefathers  bled  and  died  that  they  might 


2ENEAS. 


387 


never  submit  to  that  vile  superstition  which  is  being  now 
propagated  by  a  considerable  party  in  the  Established 
Church  of  this  once  Protestant  land  !  No  man  beneath 
the  sky  has  any  more  power  to  save  your  soul  than  you 
have  yourself,  and  if  any  presumptuous  priestling  tells  you 
that  he  has,  do  not  believe  him,  but  despise  his  claims.  An 
old  woman  asks  me  to  cross  her  hand  with  a  sixpence,  and 
says  that  she  will  tell  my  fortune.  I  am  not  such  a  fool. 
And  if  another  person  dressed  in  habiliments,  which  are  not 
quite  so  becoming  to  him  as  a  red  clock  is  to  an  old  woman, 
tells  me  that  he  can  regenerate  my  child,  or  forgive  my  sins, 
I  treat  him  with  the  same  contempt  and  pity  as  that  with 
which  I  treat  the  wicked  hag.  I  believe  in  neither  the  one 
impostor  nor  the  other.  If  ever  you  are  saved  you  must 
be  saved  by  Jesus  Christ  alone  through  your  own  personal 
belief  in  him  ;  certainly  not  by  the  intervention  of  any  man, 
or  set  of  men,  hail  they  from  whatever  church  they  will. 
God  send  that  the  Pope  and  the  priesthood  and  all  their 
detestable  deceits  may  go  down  in  this  land,  and  that  Christ 
may  be  exalted  ! 

As  this  man  had  no  faith  in  any  supposed  power  coming 
from  Peter,  much  less  had  he  any  faith  in  himself,  neither 
did  he  look  within  himself  for  hope.  He  did  not  say  to 
Peter,  "  But  I  do  not  feel  streugth  enough  to  get  well ; " 
neither  did  he  say,  "  I  think  I  do  feel  power  enough  to 
shake  off  this  palsy."  He  said  neither  the  one  nor  the  other. 
Peter's  message  took  him  off  from  himself.  It  was  ,tfiEneas, 
Jesus  Christ  maketh  thee  whole  ;  it  is  not  that  thou  hast 
stamina  in  thy  constitution  and  rallying  points  about  thy 
bodily  system.  No,  ^Eneas,  thou  art  paralyzed  ;  thou  canst 
do  nothing';  but  Jesus  Christ  maketh  thee  whole."  That 
was  what  the  man  had  to  believe  ;  and  it  is  very  much  what 
you  also,  my  dear  hearer,  must  believe. 

With  his  faith  iEneas  had  the  desires  which  showed  that 
it  was  not  mere  speculation,  but  solid  practical  believing  ; 


388 


JSNEAS. 


he  anxiously  wished  to  be  made  whole.  Oh,  that  sinners 
anxiously  wished  to  be  saved  !  Oh,  that  yonder  angry  man 
wished  to  be  cured  of  his  bad  temper  !  Oh,  that  yonder 
covetous  man  wished  to  be  cured  of  his  avarice  !  Oh,  that 
yonder  lustful  man  wished  to  be  cured  of  his  uncleanness  ! 
Oh,  that  yon  drunkard  wished  to  be  cured  of  his  excess  ! 
Oh,  that  men  really  wanted  to  get  rid  of  their  sins  !  But  no. 
I  never  heard  of  men  reckoning  a  cancer  to  be  a  jewel,  but 
there  are  many  men  who  look  upon  their  sins  as  if  they  were 
gems,  which  they  keep  as  hid  treasure,  so  that  they  will 
sooner  lose  heaven  than  part  with  their  lustful  pleasures. 
^Eneas  wanted  to  be  made  whole,  and  was  ready  to  believe 
when  Peter  spoke  to  him  about  Jesus  Christ. 

And  what  did  ^Eneas  believe  ?  He  believed — and  may 
you  believe  the  same  ! — first,  that  Jesus  could  heal  Mm, 
could  heal  Mm,  JEneas.  John  Brown,  do  you  believe  that 
Jesus  Christ  can  cure  you  ?  I  do  not  care,  John,  what  your 
faith  is  about  your  wife's  case  ;  it  is  about  yourself  that  you 
want  faith  :  Jesus  Christ  is  able  to  save  you — you,  iEneas, 
you,  John  Brown;  you,  Thomas;  you,  Sarah;  you,  Mary. 
He  is  able  to  save  you.  Can  you  grip  that,  and  reply,  "  Yes, 
he  is  able  to  save  me  "  ? 

And  iEneas  believed  that  Jesus  Christ  was  able  to  save 
him  there  and  then,  just  as  he  was.  He  had  not  taken  a 
course  of  physic  ;  he  had  not  been  under  galvanism  to 
strengthen  his  nerves  and  sinews  and  prepare  him  to  be 
cured,  but  he  believed  that  Jesus  Christ  could  save  him  with- 
out any  preparation,  just  as  he  was,  then,  immediately,  with 
a  present  salvation.  When  you  think  what  Christ  is,  and 
what  he  has  done,  it  ought  not  to  be  difficult  to  believe  this. 
But  truly  God's  power  must  be  revealed  before  your  soul  will 
believe  this  unto  salvation.  Yet  it  is  true  that  Jesus  Christ 
can  heal,  and  can  heal  at  once.  Whatever  the  sin  is,  he  can 
cure  it.  I  mentioned  a  whole  set  of  sins  just  now.  The 
scarlet  fever  of  pride,  the  loathsome  leprosy  of  lust,  the 


389 


shivering  ague  of  unbelief,  the  paralysis  of  avarice, — he  can 
heal  all,  and  with  a  word,  instantaneously,  forever,  com- 
pletely, just  now.  Yes,  sinner,  he  can  heal  you  now.  iEneas 
believed  that.  He  believed,  and,  as  he  believed,  Jesus  did 
make  him  whole.  Oh,  I  wish  I  could  to-night  so  preach  the 
gospel  that  my  Lord  and  Master  would  lead  many  unbelievers 
to  believe  in  him.  0  Holy  Spirit,  work  thou  with  the  word  ! 
Sinner,  dost  thou  want  forgiveness  ?  Christ  has  wrought  it 
out.  Every  sin  that  you  have  done  shall  be  forgiven  you  for 
his  name's  sake  if  you  trust  Jesus  to  do  it.  Do  you  see  your 
sins  like  a  great  army  pursuing  you  ?  Do  you  think  they 
will  swallow  you  up  quick  ?  Jesus  Christ,  if  you  believe 
in  him,  will  make  an  end  of  them  all.  You  have  read  in 
Exodus  how  Pharaoh  and  his  hosts  pursued  the  tribes  of 
Israel,  and  the  people  were  terribly  alarmed  ;  but  early  in 
the  morning  they  were  no  more  afraid,  for  Miriam  took  her 
timbrel,  and  the  daughters  of  Israel  went  forth  with  her  in 
the  dance  ;  and  they  sang,  "  Sing  unto  the  Lord,  for  he  hath 
triumphed  gloriously.  The  horse  and  his  rider  hath  he 
thrown  into  the  sea."  One  of  the  most  magnificent  notes 
in  that  marvellous  song  was  this,  "The  depths  have  covered 
them  :  there  is  not  one  of  them  left."  The  damsels  took  up 
the  refrain,  and  sang,  "  Not  one,  not  one,  not  one  !  The 
depths  have  covered  them  :  there  is  not  one  of  them  left." 
Now,  if  you  believe  in  Jesus,  the  whole  army  of  your  sins 
shall  sink  beneath  the  sea  of  his  blood,  and  your  soul  shall 
sing,  "  The  depths  have  covered  them  :  there  is  not  one  of 
them  left."  Such  shall  be  your  song  to-night,  if  you  are 
enabled  to  believe  in  Jesus  Christ,  God's  crucified  Son. 

But  do  not  think  that  we  preach  about  the  pardon  of  past 
sin  only,  because  if  a  man  could  get  his  past  sins  pardoned, 
and  go  on  as  he  did  before,  it  would  be  so  much  the  worse  for 
him.  Pardon  of  sin,  without  deliverance  from  its  power, 
would  be  rather  a  curse  than  a  blessing  ;  but  wherever  sin  is 
pardoned,  God  breaks  the  neck  of  its  power  in  the  soul. 


390 


J2NEAS. 


Mind,  we  do  not  tell  you  that  Jesus  Christ  will  forgive  the 
past  and  then  leave  you  to  live  the  same  life  as  before  ;  but 
we  tell  you  this  :  whatever  the  sin  is  that  is  now  a  disease  to 
you,  Jesus  Christ  can  heal  you  of  it.  He  can  save  you  from 
the  habit  and  power  of  evil  doing  and  thinking.  I  will  not 
attempt  to  go  into  details.  There  are  odd  people  coming 
into  the  tabernacle  on  ordinary  occasions,  and  so  I  dare  say 
there  may  be  to-night.  How  often  has  there  come  in  a  man 
to  whom  I  might  say,  "  Put  out  your  tongue,  sir.  Ah,  I  see 
red  spots,  and  black  spots,  for  you  are  a  liar  and  a  swearer. " 
Can  my  Master  heal  such  a  diseased  tongue  as  that  ?  Yes, 
trust  thou  him  to-night,  and  he  will  make  thee  truthful,  and 
purge  thee  from  thy  profanity.  But  here  is  another  ;  I  dare 
not  describe  him.  Look  at  him  !  He  has  lived  an  unchaste 
life,  and  strong  are  his  passions  ;  and  he  says,  "  Can  I  ever 
be  recovered  from  my  vile  desires  ?  "  Oh,  sir,  my  Lord  can 
lay  his  hand  on  that  hot  heart  of  thine,  and  cool  it  down  to 
a  sweet  sobriety  of  chastity.  And  thou,  fallen  woman,  do 
not  think  that  thou  art  beyond  his  powers  ;  he  shows  him- 
self mighty  to  save  such  as  "  the  woman  that  was  a  sinner." 
Ah,  if  you  are  a  slave  to  vile  sins,  Jesus  can  give  perfect  free- 
dom from  vicious  habits.  You  young  man  there,  you  know 
that  you  have  fallen  into  many  sins  which  you  dare  not 
mention,  which  coil  about  your  heart,  and  poison  your  life 
like  serpents  writhing  within  your  conscience.  My  Lord 
cau  take  them  all  out  of  the  soul,  and  deliver  you  from  the 
results  of  their  fiery  venom.  Yea-,  he  can  make  you  into  a 
new  creature,  and  cause  you  to  be  born  again.  He  can  make 
you  love  the  things  which  you  once  hated,  and  hate  the 
things  which  you  aforetime  loved,  and  turn  the  current  of 
your  thoughts  in  quite  another  way.  You  see  Niagara  leap- 
ing down  its  awful  height,  and  you  say,  "  Who  can  stop 
this  ?  "  Ay,  indeed,  who  can  stop  it  ?  But  my  Master  can, 
and  if  he  speaks  to  the  Niagara  of  your  lust,  and  says, 
"  Cease  thy  raging  ! "  it  will  pause  at  once  ;  yea,  if  he  bids 


391 


the  waters  of  desire  leap  up  instead  of  down,  you  shall  be  as 
full  of  love  to  Christ  as  once  you  were  full  of  love  to  sin. 
He  made  the  sun  to  stand  still,  and  caused  the  moon  to 
pause  upon  the  hill  of  Gribeah ;  and  he  can  do  all  things. 
Spake  he  not  the  world  out  of  nothing  ?  And  can  he  not 
create  new  hearts  and  right  spirits  in  the  souls  of  men  who 
have  been  far  off  from  him  by  wicked  works  ?  He  can  do 
so,  and  blessed  be  his  name,  he  will  :  the  world  of  mind  is  as 
much  beneath  his  control  as  that  of  matter.  If  thou  believ- 
est,  0  man,  to  thee  I  may  say  as  Peter  did  to  iEneas, 
"Jesus  Christ  maketh  thee  whole." 

IV.  Well,  now,  let  us  pass  on  to  notice,  next,  that  the 
mak  was  made  whole.  There  was  no  impost  are  about  it ; 
he  was  made  whole,  and  made  whole  there  and  then.  Just 
fancy,  for  a  minute,  wkat  would  have  been  the  result  if  he 
had  not  been  made  whole.  What  dishonor  it  would  have 
been  to  Peter  !  Peter  said,  "iEneas,  Jesus  Christ  maketh 
thee  whole "  :  but  there  lies  iEneas  as  palsied  as  before. 
Everybody  would  say,  "Peter  is  a  false  witness."  Well, 
now,  I  will  not  say  that  the  preacher  of  the  gospel  must  see 
souls  saved,  or  else  he  is  a  false  witness.  I  will  not  say  that, 
but  I  will  say  that  if  ever  my  ministry,  under  God,  does  not 
save  souls  I  will  give  it  up  ;  for  it  seems  to  me  that  if  we  do 
not  bring  souls  to  Christ,  we  preachers  are  just  good  for 
nothing.  What  are  we  if  we  do  not  turn  many  to  righteous- 
ness ?  Eeapers  who  never  reap,  soldiers  who  never  win  a 
battle,  fishermen  who  take  no  fish,  and  lights  which  en- 
lighten no  one.  These  are  sad  but  true  comparisons.  Do 
I  address  any  unsuccessful  minister  ?  I  would  not  speak 
harshly  to  him,  but  I  would  speak  very  severely  to  myself  if 
I  were  in  his  case.  I  remember  the  dream  of  a  minister. 
He  thought  that  he  was  in  hell,  and  being  there,  he  was 
dreadfully  distressed,  and  cried  out,  "Is  this  the  place  where 
I  am  to  I>e  forever?  I  am  a  minister."  A  grim  voice  re- 
plied, "  No,  it  is  lower  down  for  unfaithful  ministers,  much 


392 


^:neas. 


lower  down  than  this."  And  then  he  awoke.  Ah,  and  if 
we  do  not  agonize  till  souls  are  brought  to  Christ,  we  shall 
have  to  agonize  to  all  eternity.  I  am  persuaded  of  it  :  we 
must  have  men  saved,  or  else  we  shall  be  like  Peter  would 
have  been  if  he  had  said,  "  Jesus  Christ  makes  thee  whole," 
and  the  man  had  not  been  made  whole, — we  shall  be  dis- 
honored witnesses. 

What  dishonor  would  have  been  brought  upon  the  name 
of  Jesus  if  the  man  had  not  been  made  whole.  Suppose,  my 
dear  fellow  sinner,  you  were  to  believe  in  Jesus  Christ,  and 
yet  were  not  saved  ;  what  then  ?  Oh,  I  do  not  like  to  sup- 
pose so,  for  it  is  almost  a  blasphemy  to  imagine  it,  but  yet 
consider  it  for  a  moment.  Believe  in  Jesus  and  not  be 
saved  !  Then  he  has  broken  his  word,  or  lost  his  power  to 
save,  either  of  which  we  are  unwiMing  to  tolerate  for  a 
minute.  If  thou  believest  in  Jesus  Christ,  as  surely  as  thou 
livest  Jesus  Christ  has  saved  thee.  I  will  tell  thee  one  thing, 
— if  thou  believest  in  Jesus  Christ  and  thou  art  damned,  I 
will  be  damned  with  thee.  Come  !  I  will  risk  my  soul  on 
that  bottom  as  surely  as  thou  wilt  risk  thine,  for  if  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  does  ever  lose  a  soul  that  trusts  him  he  will  lose 
mine  :  but  he  never  will,  he  never  can  : 

"  His  honor  is  engaged  to  save 
The  meanest  of  his  sheep  ; 
All  that  his  heavenly  Father  gave, 
His  hands  securely  keep." 

Rest  ye  in  him  and  ye  shall  be  saved,  else  were  his  name  dis- 
honored. 

And  suppose  that,  like  iEneas,  you  trusted  Christ — if 
you  were  not  saved,  what  then  ?  Why,  then  the  gospel 
would  not  be  true.  Shut  up  those  churches,  close  those 
Chapels,  banish  those  ministers,  burn  those  Bibles  ;  there  is 
no  truth  in  any  of  them  if  a  soul  can  believe  in  Jesus  and 
yet  not  be  saved.    The  gospel  is  a  lie,  and  an  imposture,  if 


J2NEAS. 


393 


it  be  true  that  any  poor  sinner  can  put  his  trust  in  Jesus  and 
not;  be  healed  of  his  sins ;  for  saith  the  Lord  of  old,  "  Him 
that  cometh  to  me  I  will  in  no  wise  cast  out."  This  is  his 
last  word  to  his  church,  "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world  and  preach 
the  gospel  to  every  creature  :  he  that  believeth  and  is  bap- 
tized shall  be  saved  ;  and  he  that  believeth  not  shall  be 
damned."  If  men  believing  are  not  saved  from  the  power 
of  sin,  then  the  gospel  is  not  true,  and  we  are  sent  on  a  fool's 
errand  :  but  they  are  saved,  blessed  be  the  name  of  God,  and 
the  gospel  is  truth  itself. 

Oh,  my  dear  hearer,  fain  would  I  urge  thee  to  put  thy 
trust  in  Jesus  Christ  to-night,  by  the  experience  which  I  and 
other  believers  have  enjoyed  ;  for  some  of  us  have  relied  on 
the  name  of  the  Redeemer,  and  he  has  saved  us.  TVe  shall 
never  forget  the  day,  some  of  us,  when  we  left  off  self-right- 
eousness and  believed  in  Christ  to  the  salvation  of  our  souls. 
The  marvel  was  done  in  a  minute,  but  the  change  was  so 
great  that  we  can  never  explain  it,  or  cease  to  bless  the  Lord 
for  it. 

"  Happy  day  !    Happy  day  ! 
When  Jesus  washed  my  sins  away." 

I  recollect  the  morning  when  salvation  came  to  me  as  I  sat 
in  a  little  Primitive  Methodist  chapel  under  the  gallery,  and 
the  preacher  said,  "  That  young  man  looks  unhappy;"  and 
added,  "  Young  man,  you  will  never  find  peace  except  you 
look  to  Christ ;"  and  he  called  out  to  me,  "  Look  !  "  •  With 
a  voice  of  thunder  he  shouted,  "Young  man,  look!  Look 
now  ! "  I  did  look,  I  turned  the  eye  of  faith  to  Jesus  at 
once.  My  burden  disappeared,  and  my  soul  was  merry  as  a 
bird  let  loose  from  her  cage,  even  as  it  is  now  as  often  as  I 
remember  the  blessed  salvation  of  Jesus  Christ.  "We  speak 
what  we  do  know  ;  ours  is  no  hearsay  or  second-hand  testi- 
mony ;  we  speak  of  what  we  have  felt  and  tasted  and  handled, 
and  our  anxiety  is  that  you  may  know  and  feel  the  same. 


394 


,ENEAS. 


Kemember,  my  dear  hearer,  that  the  way  to  use  the  gospel  is 
to  put  it  to  yourselves  like  this.  What  is  your  name  ?  I 
said,  "John  Brown,"  just  now,  did  I  not?  Suppose  it  is 
John  Brown,  then.  Well,  the  gospel  says,  "  He  that  believ- 
eth  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  hath  everlasting  life."  Then 
it  means  "If  John  Brown  believes  on  Jesus  he  has  everlast- 
ing life."  "He  that  belie veth  and  is  baptized  shall  be 
saved," — "  Then  I,  John  Brown,  believing  and  being  bap- 
tized shall  be  saved."  Lay  hold  of  it  in  that  way.  Perhaps 
you  say,  "  But  may  I  put  my  name  to  a  promise,  and  appro- 
priate it  in  that  fashion  ?  "  Yes,  you  may,  because  there  is 
nothing  in  the  Bible  to  say  that  your  name  was  left  out  from 
the  list  of  those  to  whom  the  promise  is  made.  If  I  were  a 
beggar  in  the  streets,  and  were  very  hungry,  and  I  heard 
that  there  was  a  gentleman  who  was  giving  a  good  meal 
away,  and  that  he  had  advertised  that  any  beggar  might 
come,  I  do  not  think  I  should  say,  "  Well,  my  name  is  not 
down  in  his  list."  I  should  stop  away  when  I  found  that  he 
inserted  an  excluding  clause,  "Charles  Spurgeon  shall  not 
have  any  of  the  food  I  distribute,"  but  not  till  then.  Until 
I  read  in  black  and  white  that  he  excluded  me  I  should  run 
the  risk,  and  get  in  with  the  other  hungry  folk.  Until  he 
shut  me  out  I  would  go.  It  should  be  his  deed  and  not  mine 
that  kept  me  from  the  feast.  Sometimes  you  say,  "  But  I 
am  not  fit  to  go  to  Christ."  The  fittest  way  to  go  to  Christ 
is  to  go  just  as  you  are.  What  is  the  best  livery  to  wear 
when  you  go  a-begging  ?  I  recollect  sometime  ago,  when  I 
lived  not  far  from  here,  in  the  extremeness  of  my  greenness, 
I  gave  a  man  who  begged  at  the  door  a  pair  of  patent  leather 
boots.  He  put  them  on,  and  expressed  great  gratitude ; 
but  I  met  him  afterwards,  and  I  was  not  at  all  surprised 
to  find  that  he  had  pulled  them  off.  They  were  not  at  all 
the  style  of  things  to  go  about  begging  in.  People  would 
look  at  him  and  say,  * i  What  !  you  needing  coppers  while 
wearing  those  handsome  boots  ?    Your  tale  won't  do."  A 


2ENEAS. 


395 


beggar  succeeds  a  great  deal  better  barefoot  than  in  fine 
shoes.  Eags  are  the  livery  of  mendicants.  When  you  go 
and  beg  for  mercy  at  the  hand  of  God,  do  not  put  on  those 
pretty  righteousnesses  of  yours,  but  go  with  all  your  sin  and 
misery,  and  emptiness,  and  wretchedness,  and  say,  "Lord, 
here  am  I.  Thou  hast  said  that  Christ  is  able  to  save  to  the 
uttermost  them  that  come  unto  God  by  him.  I  am  a  soul 
that  wants  saving  to  the  uttermost,  and  here  I  am.  I  have 
come.    Lord,  save  me." 

Now,  summing  all  up  :  this  is  what  you  have  to  do,  sin- 
ner, in  order  to  be  saved  to-night,  simply  believe  in  Jesus 
Christ.  I  saw  a  young  woman  from  America  in  the  vestry 
some  little  time  ago  who  came  in  great  concern  of  soul 
to  know  the  way  of  salvation,  and  I  said  to  her,  "  Do  you 
not  see  it?  If  you  trust  Christ,  you  are  saved."  I  quoted 
the  Scriptures  which  teach  this  great  truth  and  made  them 
plain  to  her,  until  the  Holy  Spirit  opened  her  eyes  ;  light 
came  on  her  face  in  a  moment,  and  she  said,  "  I  do  see  it.  I 
trust  Christ  with  all  my  heart :  and  I  am  to  believe  that 
I  am  saved  because  I  trust  Jesus,  and  he  has  promised  to 
save  believers  ?  "  "  Yes,"  I  replied,  "  You  are  getting  on 
the  rock  now."  "  I  feel,"  she  said,  "  a  deep  peace  beginning 
in  my  soul,  but  I  cannot  understand  how  it  can  be,  for 
my  grandfather  belonged  to  the  old  school  Presbyterians, 
and  he  told,  me  he  was  six  years  before  he  could  get  peace, 
and  had  to  be  put  into  a  lunatic  asylum,  for  he  was  so 
miserable."  Ah,  yes,  I  have  no  doubt  such  cases  have  hap- 
pened. Some  will  go  seventeen  thousand  miles  round  about 
merely  to  go  across  a  street,  but  there  is  no  need  for  it. 
There  it  is — "  The  word  is  nigh  thee,  on  thy  lips  and  in  thy 
heart.  If  with  thy  heart  thou  wilt  believe  in  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  and  with  thy  mouth  make  confession  of  him, 
thou  shalt  be  saved,"  There  is  naught  to  be  done  ;  there  is 
naught  to  be  felt ;  there  is  naught  to  be  brought.  No  prepa- 
ration is  wanted.    Come  just  as  you  are,  and  trust  Christ  to 


396 


JSNEAS. 


save  you  out  and  out  this  night,  and  you  shall  be  saved. 
God's  honor  and  Christ's  word  are  pledged  to  it. 

V.  This  is  the  last  thing.  When  ^Eneas  was  healed 
he  acted  in  conformity  therewith.  Peter  said  unto 
him,  "JSneas,  Jesus  Christ  maketh  thee  whole:  arise,  and 
make  thy  bed."  He  did  so.  He  rose  directly  and  made  his 
bed. 

Now,  if  any  of  you  say  to-night,  "  I  have  believed  in 
Jesus,"  remember  you  are  bound  to  prove  it.  How  prove  it  ? 
Why,  if  you  have  believed  in  Jesus,  you  are  made  whole,  and 
you  are  to  go  home  and  show  people  how  whole  you  are. 
This  man  was  palsied,  and  had  been  lying  there  prostrate 
eight  years,  and  could  never  make  his  bed,  but  he  proved  he 
was  healed  by  making  his  bed  for  himself.  Perhaps  here  is  a 
man  who  when  he  has  entered  his  house  has  generally  opened 
the  door  with  an  oath.  If  there  is  such  a  person  here,  and 
Christ  saves  you — he  will  wash  your  mouth  out  for  you. 
You  will  have  done  with  profane  language  forever.  Your 
wife  will  be  surprised  when  you  go  home  to  hear  how  dif- 
ferently you  talk.  Perhaps  you  have  been  used  to  mix  with 
rough  companions  in  your  work,  and  you  have  talked  as  they 
have  done  ;  if  Jesus  Christ  has  made  you  whole,  there  is  an 
end  to  all  filthy  speaking.  Now  you  will  talk  graciously, 
sweetly,  clearly,  profitably.  In  years  gone  by  you  were 
angry  and  passionate  ;  if  Jesus  Christ  has  made  you  whole, 
you  will  be  as  tender  as  a  lamb.  You  will  find  the  old  lion 
lifting  his  head  and  giving  an  occasional  roar  and  a  shake  of 
his  mane,  but  then  he  will  be  chained  by  the  restraints  of 
grace,  while  the  meek  and  gentle  lamb  of  the  new  nature 
will  feed  in  pastures  wide  and  green.  Ah,  if  the  Lord  has 
saved  you,  the  drunkard's  ale-bench  will  have  no  more  of 
you,  for  you  will  want  better  company  than  the  seats  of 
scoffers  can  afford  you.  If  the  Lord  saves  you,  you  will 
want  to  do  something  for  him,  to  show  your  grateful  love. 
I  know  this  very  night  you  will  long  to  tell  your  children, 


JENEAS.  397 

and  tell  your  friends,  that  Jesus  Christ  has  made  you  whole. 
John  Bunyan  says  that  when  he  was  made  whole  he  wanted 
to  tell  the  crows  on  the  ploughed  land  about  it.  I  do  not 
wonder  that  he  did.  Tell  anybody,  tell  everybody,  "  Jesus 
Christ  has  saved  me."  It  is  a  sensation  the  like  of  which  no 
man  can  imagine,-  if  he  has  not  felt  it,  to  be  made  a  new 
creature  right  away,  in  a  moment.  That  surprises  all  who 
see  it,  and  as  people  like  to  tell  news — strange  news — so  does 
a  new-born  man  long  to  go  and  tell  others,  "  I  have  been 
born  again  :  I  have  found  the  Saviour." 

Now,  mark,  you  will  have  to  prove  that  this  is  so  by  an 
honest,  upright,  consistent,  holy  life, — not,  however,  by 
being  merely  sternly  honest.  If  Christ  has  saved  you,  he 
will  save  you  from  being  selfish.  You  will  love  your  fellow 
men  ;  you  will  desire  to  do  them  good.  You  will  endeavor 
to  help  the  poor  ;  you  will  try  to  instruct  the  ignorant.  He 
who  truly  becomes  a  Christian  becomes  in  that  very  same 
day  a  practical  philanthropist.  No  man  is  a  true  Christian 
who  is  un-Christlike — who  can  live  for  himself  alone,  to 
hoard  money  or  to  make  himself  great.  The  true  Christian 
lives  for  others  :  in  a  word,  he  lives  for  Christ.  If  Christ 
has  healed  you,  gentle  compassion  will  saturate  your  soul 
from  this  time  forth  and  forever.  0  Master,  thou  who  didst 
heal  men's  bodies  in  the  days  of  thy  flesh,  heal  men's  hearts 
to-night,  we  pray  thee. 

Still  this  word  more.  Somebody  says,  "  Oh,  I  wish  I 
had  Christ  ! "  Soul,  why  not  have  him  at  once  ?  "  Oh, 
I  am  not  fit."  You  never  will  be  fit ;  you  cannot  be  fit, 
except  in  the  sense  in  which  you  are  fit  even  now.  What  is 
fitness  for  washing  ?  Why,  being  dirty.  What  is  fitness  for 
alms  ?  Why,  being  in  distress.  W'hat  is  fitness  for  a  doc- 
tor ?  Why,  being  ill.  This  is  all  the  fitness  that  a  man 
wants  for  trusting  in  Christ  to  save  him.  Christ's  mercy  is 
to  be  had  for  nothing,  bribe  or  purchase  is  out  of  the  ques- 
tion.   I  have  heard  of  a  woman  whose  child  was  in  a  fever 


398 


-32NEAS. 


and  needed  grapes  ;  and  there  was  a  prince  who  lived  near, 
in  whose  hot-house  there  were  some  of  the  rarest  grapes  that 
had  ever  been  grown.  She  scraped  together  the  little  money 
she  could  earn,  and  went  to  the  gardener  and  offered  to  buy 
a  bunch  of  the  royal  fruit.  Of  course  he  repulsed  her,  and 
said  they  were  not  be  sold.  Did  she  imagine  that  the  prince 
grew  grapes  to  sell  like  a  market-gardener  ?  And  he  sent 
her  on  her  way  much  grieved.  She  came  again  ;  she  came 
several  times,  for  a  mother's  importunity  is  great ;  but  no 
offer  of  hers  would  be  accepted.  At  last  the  princess  heard 
of  it  and  wished  to  see  the  woman ;  and  when  she  came  the 
princess  said,  "  The  prince  does  not  sell  the  fruit  of  his  gar- 
den but  snipping  off  a  bunch  of  grapes  and  dropping  them 
into  a  little  bag,  she  said,  "  He  is  always  ready  to  give  it  away 
to  the  poor."  Now,  here  is  the  rich  cluster  of  gospel  salva- 
tion from  the  true  vine.  My  Lord  will  not  sell  it,  but  he  is 
always  ready  to  give  it  away  to  all  who  humbly  ask  for  it ; 
and  if  you  want  it  come  and  take  it,  and  take  it  now  by 
believing  in  Jes*us. 

The  Lord  bless  you  for  Christ's  sake.  Amen. 


INDEX  TO  SCRIPTURE  TEXTS. 


Note.  In  these  indexes,  the  volume 
by  the  numerals — the  other  works  by 
Saint  and  his  Saviour,  S.  S.  Morning 
ning,  E.  E.    Types  and  Emblems,  T.  E. 


GENESIS. 

Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

  5 

i  :  4. .  

. .  .E.  E  

  5 

i :  4  

-..E.-  E  

 192 

  153 

 193 

iii  :  S   

. .  .E.  E  

  184 

  20 

vii:  15  

. . .  V.  4  

  1 

vii :  16  

...M.  M.... 

  157 

viii  :  9  

...E.  E  

......  73 

viii :  9  

...E.  E  

178 

. . .  E.  E . . . . 

WW  29 

ix  :  14. 

..EE 

227 

'  '  E  E 

'.'.WW  228 

xv :  15. 

..EE 

 228 

 y  2 

  380 

xix  :  20  

.  .  .  .V*  6    .  .  . 

  202 

xxi :  6  

..  .M.  M  

  167 

xxiv  :  63  

...M.  M.... 

  228 

xxv  :  11  

...M.  M.... 

  48 

xxix  :  26 

.  ,  .E.  E  .... 

  321 

xxxi  :  13  

....V.  10.... 

  282 

xxxii :  12 

,  E.  E  .... 

  109 

xxxv  :  18  . . . 

....E.  E  .... 

  68 

xxxix  :  12 

...M.M  ... 

  207 

xli  :  4  

..M.M.... 

 185 

xlii :  2  

E.  E  

 142 

xlii  :  8  

E.  E  

  4 

xlvi :  3,  4  . . . 

. . .  .E.  E  

  133 

xlix  :  23,  24  . 

....v.i  

  192 

xlix  :  24. .  , 

.  ..M.  M  ... 

  53 

EXODUS. 

iii  :  7   

...E.  E  

  229 

vii:  12  

...E.  E  

 181 

viii :  28  

.  ,  ,  M.  M  

  179 

ix  :  27  

.. .V.  3  

  242 

xi:  7  

...V.7  

  160 

xii  :  13  

...V.5  

 303 

3  of  the  series  of  sermons  are  indicated 
the  following  abbreviations,  viz. — The 
by  Morning,  M.  M.   Evening  by  Eve- 


Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

.V.  10  

xiv  :  13  

..M.  M  

xv  :  23,  24,  25 . 

..V.  9  

* ' " " 

xvi :  21  

..M.  M  

198 

xvii :  12  

..E.E  

  107 

xx  :  25  

..M.  M  

....  196 

. .  E.  E   

239 

xxv  :  6  

.  .M.  M  

....  241 

xxxiii  :  18  

..V.  2  

....  204 

..V.  8  

xxxiv  :  20  

..E.  E  

 291 

xxxv  :  8  

..E.E  

....  336 

LEVITICUS. 

E  E  

104 

vi  :  13  

. .  M.  M  

197 

xiii :  12,  13  . . 

..V.  7  

311 

xiii :  13  

..E.  E  

'.  57 

M.  M  

....  273 

xvi :  34  

V.  2   

....  104 

xix:  16,  17... 

..M.  M  

....  334 

xix :  36  

..E.E  

....  250 

NUMBEES. 

ii :  31  

M.  M  

....  200 

iii:  8  

...T.  E  

....  22 

vi :  4  

...E.  E  

 244 

xi :  11  

E.  E  

....  281 

xi :  23  

...E.  E  

 160 

xii :  1  

...E.  E  

....  282 

M.  M  

 121 

xiv :  11  

. . .  M.  M  

....  240 

xxi :  17  

...E.  E  

..  .169 

xxii  :  34  

...V.  3  

....  244 

xxiii :  10  

...V.  9  

....  265 

T.  E  

....  7 

xxiv  :  17  

.  .V.  9  

....  104 

xxvii :  5  

...T.E  

....  209 

400 


INDEX  TO  SCRIPTURE  TEXTS. 


NUMBERS. 


Chap.  &  verse. 

p 

xxxii:  6  

...E.E  

..  219 

xxxv  :  11.,.. 

...V.  3  

. .  106 

DEUTERONOMY. 

j  •  25  

...V.  3  

138 

i :  38  

. .  .E.  E  

263 

201 

...E.  E  

. . .  359 

xvxii  *  9 

*M  M 

320 

xxxii  :  29  

...V.  7  

. . .  126 

xxxiii :  25  ... 

.  .V.  5  

49 

xxxiii ;  27  ... 

.  .M.  M  

. ..  315 

xxxiii  ;  27  . . . 

. .  .M.  M  

. .  316 

...M.  M  

271 

JOSHUA. 

i :  7  

...E.  E  

...  132 

...M.  M  

1 

vi :  26  

...E.E  

. ..  150 

vii:  20  

...V.  3  

. 249 

xx  •  ^  

e  

. . .  35 

JUDGES. 

vii :  20  

...M.  M  

...  264 

xv :  18  

...E.  E  

. . .  21 

xv :  18  

...T.  E  

• • •  1^4 

xvi :  6  

190 

xvi :  13  

...T.  E  

179 

xvi :  20,  21  . 

...V.  5  

236 

RUTH. 

i:  14  

...M.  M  

...  T50 

214 

ii :  3  

...E.E  

...  L'Ol 

ii :  14  

...E.  E  

...  79 

ii:  17  

...E.  E  

...  Sil6 

I  SAMUEL. 

:  27  E.  E  265 

iv  :  3  V.  5   355 

vii:  12  M.  M   365 

xii:  17  V.  2   232 

xiii :  20  M.  M   62 

xv  :  22  

xv  :  24  

xvii :  36,  37  . 
xvii :  50. . . . 
xviii  :  17 . . . 
xxvii  :  1 . . . . 
xxx  :  13 ... . 


II  SAMUEL. 

Chap.  &  verse. 

i  :  26  

 E.  E  

...  23 

ii :  26  

 E.  E  

...  367 

v  :  23  

. .  30 

vi :   20-22  . 

 Y'  \-  

...  45 

vii :  18-22  . 

ix  :  8  

 E.  E  

. . .  148 

ix :  13  

 M.  M  

. . .  148 

xi:  2  

 E.  E  

. . .  17 

xv  :  23.... 

 M.  M  

. ..  152 

xvi:  29-31 

 V.  8  

...  112 

xvii:  23... 

 V.  9  

...  496 

xviii :  23  . . 

 E.  E  

...  31 

xxi :  10. . . . 

 E.  E  

...  91 

xxiii :  1  . . . 

 M.  M  

...  233 

xxiii :  4  

 T.  E  

. . .  61 

xxiii :  5  ... 

 M.  M  

...  356 

I  KINGS. 

xvi :  6  

 V.  8  

...  79 

xvii :  16... 

 E.  E  

...  59 

xviii  :  21 . . 

 V.  3  

...  179 

xviii  :  40  . 

 §*  ^  

...  200 

xviii :  43  . 

 E.  E  

...  274 

xix  :  4   

 E.  E  

...  140 

xix :  8  

. . .  279 

xxii  :  48.. 

'.  '.  '.  '.  M.  M. 

...  13 

II.  KINGS. 

iii:  16,  17 

 E.  E  

...  137 

vi:  9  

 E.  E  

...  13 

vii :  3 

 M.  M  

. ..  73 

vii :  19... 

 V.  2  

50 

xxv  :  30.. 

 M.  M  

45 

I  CHRONICLES. 

iv  :  22  ... 

 E.E........ 

...  33 

iv  :  23. ... 

 M.  M  

...  155 

v:  22.... 

 M.  M  

...  160 

ix  :  33  . . . 

 E.  E  

...  214 

xii :  8-15  . 

 T.  E  

....  270 

II  CHRONICLES. 


,...E.  E. . 

...V.  3.. 

...V.  10. 
,..,T.  E.. 
.E.E. 


..  294 

..  247 

..  262 

..  247 

..  Ill 


....M.  M   291 

....E.  E   72 


xvi  :  9  V.  10   68 

xxv  :  9  M.  M   335 

xxviii  :  10  V.  7   94 

xxx  :  27  E.  E  310 

xxxi  :  21  ....... E.  E   75 

xxxii  :  31  E.  E  182 

xxxiii  :  13  V.  3   311 


INDEX  TO  SCRIPTURE  TEXTS. 


401 


EZRA. 

Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

vii  :  22  

..M.  M  

348 

viii  :  22  

...M.M  

 268 

NEHEMIAH. 

iii  :  8   

...V.  9.  

....  89 

iii  :  8   

...E.E  

iii :  15  

...E.E..  

103 

ml  20  

...E.E.  

...MM  

115 

x:  3...^.... 

...E.  E  

 335 

JOB. 

i :  5  

E.  E 

 362 

1  i.^'-JA 

.' '.  !e.'  e!  '. '. ', 

  22 

'  z~! 

'  "e.  e  * ". 

....  262 

vn :  20  

"  * "  V  3 

....  252 

"  **M.  M. 

....  363 

f?  2....'!.'.*.' 

!!"s.s 

 378 

x  :  2  

...M.M  

  49 

xiii  :  23  

...E.E  

....  189 

xiii  :  25  

...T.  E  

....  78 

xiv  :  1  

...E.E  

....  70 

xiv  :  14   

...E.E  

....  127 

xix  :  25   

...M.  M  

....  112 

xix  :  26  

...E.  E  

....  10 

xxii  :  21  

...E.  E  

 129 

xxiii  :  3  

...E.  E  

326 

xxiii  :  3  

...S.  S  

  99 

xxiii  :  3  

...V.  3  

  90 

xxix  :  2  .... 

...M.M  

 224 

xxxiii  :  29,  30  ..V.  10  

  147 

xxxv  :  10. . . 

...E.  E  

xxxv  :  10. . . 

...V.  2  

.....  167 

xxxvi :  2... 

...E.E  

12 

xxxviii  :  16. 

...E.E  

.  .  .  251 

xxxviii  :  31. 

...E.  E  

  81 

xl  :  4  

...M.  M  

 158 

PSALMS. 

i :  4  

....V.  7  

293 

li :  12  

...V.  6  

109 

iv  :  2  ...... 

...M.  M  

98 

v  :  8  

....E.E  

 257 

vii  :  12  

....V.  2  

 426 

ix  :  1  

....M.  M  

.....  304 

x :  16    . . .. 

....E.  E  

118 

....E.  E  

xii  :  1 . . .-. . . 

....M.  M...... 

 169 

xvii  :  7  

....M.  M  

 141 

Chap.  &  verse, 
xviii  :  29  

xviii  :  35  

xix  :  12  , 

xix  :  12  , 

xix  :  13  , 

xix  :  13   

xxii  :  1  

xxii  :  7  

14  

14  

1  


..T.E... 
..E.E... 
..V.  7... 
..V.  3... 
..V.  3... 
..E.  E... 
M.  M. 


Page 
.  112 
.  100 
.  245 
.  164 
.  432 
..  76 
. ..  106 


4... 


xxi  i  : 
xxii 
xxiii 
xxiii 
xxiii 

xxiv  :  4  

xxiv  :  8  

xxv  :  5  

xxv  :  18  

xxvi :  9  

xxvii :  1  

xxvii :  14  

xxviii  :  1 . . . . 

xxviii  :  9  

xxix  :  2  

xxx  :  5  

xxx  :  6  

xxx  :  7  

xxxi  :  4  

xxxi  :  5.  . 

xxxii  :  1  

xxxii  :  5  

xxxiii  :  13 . . . 

xxxiii  :  21 . . . 

xxxiv  :  5  

xxxiv 
xxxv 
xxxvi : 
xxxvi  : 

xxxvi  : 
xxxvi : 

xxxvii  : 
xxxviii 
xxxviii 
xx xix :  1 
xxxix  :  12... 

xiii  :  9  

xliv  :  1  

xiv  :  2   


.M.  M   105 

.  102 

.  103 

.  75 

.  326 


M.  M.. 
..M.  M... 
..V.  4.... 
..E.E.... 
. .E.  E  ... 
..E.  E  ... 
..E.  E  ... 
..E.  E  ... 
..E.  E.... 
..E.  E.... 
..E.E.... 
..M.  M... 
..E.  E.... 
..E.  E.... 

..M.  M  

..M.  M  134 

..M.  M   70 

..S.  S  ....   354 

..E.E... 
..E.  E  .. 
..  V.  4... 
..E.  E  . 


1S7 

340 
191 
102 
267 
168 
243 
185 
106 
229 


11.. 
:  3.... 


:  4  .. 
:  21. 
:  21. 


...M.  M... 
...M.  M... 
...V.  5.... 
...V.  2.... 
...E.  E  ... 
...V.  9.... 
...E.  E  ... 
...E.  E  ... 
...E.  E  ... 
...M.  M. 


  234 

  242 

  58 

 260 

 272 

  1S4 

  253 


xiv  :  2   

xiv  :  7   

xiv  :  8  

xlvi  ;  1   

xlvii  :  4  

li  :  1  

li  :  10  

li  :  14  

Iii  :  8   


311 
292 
166 

,..M.  M   146 

...E.  E  165 

...E.E   74 

..M.M   76 

...E.E... 
...V.  6  ... 
...V.  4.... 
.M.M   173 


204 
13 


...M..M. 
...E.E.... 
...E.E.... 
...E.E.... 
..  M.  M... 
...M.  M... 
...E.  E.... 
...M.  M  .. 


150 
46 
124 
318 
242 


402 


INDEX  TO  SCRIPTURE  TEXTS. 


PSALMS. 


Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

lv  •  22 

M  M 

147 

lvi  •  9 

E  E 

196 

"   ' 

..V.  9  

342 

lx  :  4  

. .  T.  E . . . . ... 

 164 

lxi  :  2  

.  .V.  6  

 267 

]x[  :  7  

m  .e.  e  

43 

.  .M.  M  

59 

ixii :  8  

.  !e.  E  ...... 

247 

lxv  :  11 . . . 

.  .E."  E. . . .". . . 

215 

Ixv  :  11 . . . 

!  1m.  m  ..... . 

292 

"  *M  M 

274 

lxvi  •  20 

M  M 

145 

lxvii  •  6 

M  M 

118 

lxviii  :  10 

.  .E.  E  

345 

Ixviii  :  28  ... . 

.  .E.  E  

 322 

lxxii  :  17 

_  V.  1  

154 

lxxii  :  19  

.  !e!e  ...... 

220 

Ixxiii  :  22  ... . 

..M.  M..!. . ! 

210 

lxxiii  :  23  ... . 

!!m!  m'!'!  .. 

211 

'. '.  M.  M ..... . 

245 

lxxiv  17 

* 'm  .  M  '.. 

.....  336 

lxxiv  :  16 

,  .E.  E  .... .  . 

360 

lxxvii  .  10 ... . 

>  _g.  s  

199 

lxxxiv  :  o  . . . . 

.  .s.  s  

  315 

lxxxiv  :  6  . . . . 

. .  M.  M  

lxxxiv  .  7  . . . . 

.  .m.  M  

349 

lxxxiv  :  11 . . . 

"  "  t^t  ?r 

 277 

lxxxix  :  19  . . . 

.  .M.  M  

  23 

>#V.  2  

1 

g 

V  10*" 

343 

xci  •  3  '  ' 

r#V.  3  

42 

M  M 

24 

E  E 

113 

xci  :  9  

. .  M.  M  

  58 

M  M 

227 

xcvii  .  1  . . .  . 

.  .M.  M  

225 

xcvn  :  10. . . . 

.  .M.  M  

c  :  2  

..E.E  

9 

<j  ;  4  

.  .E.  E  . . . . 

*  'mm'mt  312 

.  .e.  e!. 

258 

ciii  :  2  

.  .M.  M  

 191 

E  E 

152 

civ  :  16  

..M.  M  

 226 

civ  :  16  

..M.  M  

298 

civ  :  34  

..V.  4  

  39 

cvi  :  8  

..V.  3  

  328 

cvii  :  7  

..M.  M  

 143 

..E.  E  

338 

..E.  E  

....  15 

cx  :  3  

..V.  6  

 249 

cxi :  5   

..V.  6  

  230 

Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

cxi  :  9   

..M.  M  

 239 

cxii  :  7  

..M.  M  

....  259 

cxiii  :  8  

..E.E  

....  209 

cxviii  :  8  

.  E.E  

....  67 

cxviii  :  12  

..E.E  

...  97 

cxix  :  15  

..M.  M  

 286 

cxix  :  37  

..E.  E  

....  20 

cxix  :  49   

..M.  M  

....  119 

cxix  :  53   

..E.E  

....  309 

cxix  :  57  

..E.E  

....  134 

cxx  :  5  

..M-  M  

249 

cxxvi  :  3  

..M.  M  

....  161 

cxxvi  :  3  

..S.  S  

....  175 

cxxvii  :  2  .... 

..V.  2  

....  34 

cxxxviii  :  5 . . . 

..M.  M  

  32 

cxxxviii  ;  8 . 

M  M  ... 

 144 

cxxxviii  :  8  . . 

..V.  5  

....  437 

cxxxix  :  17  . . . 

..E.  E  

....  121 

cxliii  :  3  

.  V.  2  

....  18 

cxlviii  :  14. . . 

..E.E  

....  261 

cxlix  :  2  

..M.  M  

....  266 

p.yIix  :  4  

..E.  E  

120 

PROVERBS. 

..M.  M  

....  188 

iv  :  23   

..V.  4  

....  381 

xi  :  25   

..M.  M  

....  234 

..V.  10  

XV.  11  

..V.  4  

....  161 

xv  :  33  

..E.  E  

....  96 

xvi  :  20   

..E.E  

....  126 

xvi  :  33  

..M.  M  

....  354 

xviii  :  12.... 

..E.  E  

....  66 

xviii  :  24 ... . 

..V.  3  

....  11 

xxvii  :  6  

..s.  s  

43 

xxiv  :  33,  34. 

..E.  E  

....  331 

xxvii  :  23  

..E.E  

....  355 

xxx  :  8  

..E.E  

....  165 

xxx  :  26  

..E.E  

...  327 

ECCLESIASTES. 


i  •  7   E.  E   302 

i-  H  E.  E   339 

vii  2  V.  2   88 

vii  :  8  ....M.  M   366 

ix  :  4  E.  E   276 

ix  :  10  M.  M   331 

x  :  7  M.  M   140 

x  :  9  E.  E   324 

xi  :  3  T.  E   225 

x  :  6   E.  E   266 


INDEX  TO  SCRIPTURE  TEXTS. 


403 


CANTICLES. 


Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

i:  2  

..M.  M  

  92 

8 

i :  4  

..E.E  

  1 

i :  4  

..M.  M  

  220 

i  :  4  

..E.  E  

23 

i:  7  

i:  7  

..E.E....... 

  34 

S  :  13  

..M.  M  

  104 

i  :  13  

..V.  8  

 259 

i:  16  

..E.  E  

.  143 

ii  :  1  

.  .E.  E  

,  .  .  ,  122 

ii  :  3  

..M.  M  

  238 

ii  :  8  

..M.  M  

  80 

ii  :  12  

.  .E.  E  

  115 

ii  :  10  

.  M.  M  

  116 

ii  :  15  

..M.  M  

 151 

ii  :  16, 17. . . . 

..E.  E  

  171 

iii  :  1  

..M.  m....:. 

  19 

iii  :  4   

..E.E  

  275 

iv  :  7  

..M.  M  

  338 

iv  :  7  

..M.  M  

  337 

iv  :  12   

..E.  E  

  7 

iv  :  12   

..M.  M  

  323 

iv  :  16   

..M.  M  

  61 

. .  .  170 

v  :  2  

.  .E.  E  

270 

..E.  E  

.  .  273 

v  :  8  

..M.  M  

 235 

v  :  11  

..E.  E  

304 

v  :  13  

..M.  M  

  122 

v:  16  

..V.  9  

 323 

v:  16  

..M.  M  

69 

..E.  E  

130 

vii  :  13  

.  .M.  M  

  275 

ISAIAH. 

  95 

iii :  10  

E.  E  

  105 

v  :  20  

..S.  S  

  22 

vi :  13  

..V.  3  

  27 

vii  :  14  

..M.  M  

...  .  360 

ix:  6  

..V.  5  

  31 

ix  :  6  

..V.  6  

  142 

xi  :  1  

..V.  5  

 197 

xiv  :  10  

..M.  M  

  178 

xxi  :  11  

..M.  M  

..  219 

•  E.  E  

  188 

^xxx  :  3. .... . 

..  V.  6  

 883 

xxx  :  18. . 

...M.  M  

 344 

xxxii :  18  ... 

..E.E  

.  ...  346 

Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

xxxiii  :  16. . . . 

..E.E  

  316 

xxxiii  :  17  

..E.E  

 323 

xxxiii  :  21 ... . 

..M-M  

 329 

xxxv  :  5,  6 . . . 

..V.  3..  

  119 

xxxvi  :  5  

E.  E  

 283 

xxxvii  :  22  . . . 

.  .M.  M  

  203 

xl  :  5  

..E.E  

  361 

xl  :  9  

..E.E  

 330 

xl :  9  

M.  M  

 177 

xl  :  11  

E.  E  

  135 

xl  :  11  

..E.E  * . 

 293 

xli  :  1  

..E.  E  

  2 

xli  :  9  

..E.E  

 138 

xli  :  10  

..M.  m...:.. 

 357 

xli  :  14  

.  V.  4  

  290 

xli  :  14  

..M.  M  

  16 

xli  :  14  

..V.  4  

  350 

xliii  :  6  

..E.E  

  296 

xliii  :  24 

E  E  

  144 

xliv  :  3  

..M.  M  

 311 

xliv  :  22  

..E.  E  

  41 

xlv  :  19  

..E.E  

  236 

xlv  :  22   

..V.  1  

  1 

xlvi  :  6  

..V.  2  

 361 

xlviiii  :  8  

..E.  E  

  353 

xlviii  :  10  

..M.  M  

  63 

xlix  :  8  

..V.  2  

 395 

xlix  :  8  

..M.  M  

  3 

xlix  :  16  

..M.  M  

 312 

Ii  :  3  

..E.E  

 153 

Ii  :  5  

..M.  M  

.  ...  244 

Iii  :  10  

V.  5  

  336 

Hi  :  12  

..V.  5  

 387 

liii  :  3  

.  s.  s  

  9 

liii  :  5  

..M.  M  

  91 

liii  :  6  

.  E.  E  

  94 

liii  :  10  

..V.  4  

  209 

liii  :  10  

..V.  8  

  96 

liii  :  10  

..E.E  

  93 

liii  :  12  

.  .M.  M  

  90 

liv  :  1  

.  E.E  

  243 

liv  :  5   ... 

..M.  M  

  170 

liv  :  11  

..E.E  

  352 

liv  :  12  

..E.E  

  350 

liv:  17  

M.  M  

  310 

liv  :  17  

.  .V.  2  

  152 

Iv  :  1  

V.  10  

  87 

lvii  :  18  

..E.E  

 245 

lviii  :  11  

..E.E  

 364 

lix  :  5  

..M.  M..... 

 221 

bdi  :  12 

E.  E  

  71 

lxiii  :  1  

..V.  3  

 404 

lxiii  :  1  

..M.  M  

.....  14 

Ixii  :  7   

..M.  M  

  25 

lxv  ;  6  

..E.E  

  303 

lxv  :  19  . . .  . 

..M.  M  

 236 

lxvi  :  8  

..V.  9  

  13 

404 


INDEX  TO  SCRIPTURE  TEXTS. 


JEREMIAH. 


Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

ii  :  2  

....M.  M  

..  352 

ii  :  18  .... 

....E.  E  

..  203 

ii  :  36  

....V.  9  

..  70 

iii  :  14  

....M.  M  

.  .  204 

iv  :  20   

....V.  7  

.  328 

v :  22,  23... 

....V.  5   

.  180 

vi  :  14  ... . 

....V.  7  

..  177 

vi  :  19  .... 

....V.  9  

..  157 

viii  :  6  

....V.  4  

..  258 

viii  :  20  

 E.  E  

..  368 

xiv  :  20  . . . 

....M.  M  

..  125 

xv  :  21  

 E.  E  

.  286 

xvii  :  14... 

...  E.E  

..  245 

xvii  :  17... 

....M.  M  

..  120 

xxiii  :  6. . . 

....M.  M  

..  31 

xxxi  :  3  . . . . 

M.  M 

..  60 

xxxi  :  3  . . . 

....M.  M  

..  355 

xxxi  :  18  . . 

....V.  9  

..  206 

xxxi  :  33  . . 

....MM  

..  9 

xxxii  :  17.. 

. . .  .E.  E  

. .  183 

xxxii  :  41 . . 

....M.  M  

..  265 

xxxiii  :  3 . . 

....M.  M  

..  253 

xlix  :  23... 

....E.E  

..  253 

Ii  :  51  

....M.  M  

..  231 

LAMENTATIONS. 

iii :  21  

.. ,.E.  E  

..  149 

iii  :  24  

....M.  M  

..  321 

iii  :  40  

....E.  E  

..  90 

iii :  41  ... . 

....M.  M  

..  285 

iii  :  58  

....M.  M  

..  325 

EZEKIEL. 

i  :  15-19... 

....V.  2  

..  188 

iii  :  7  

....E.  E  

..  119 

xi  :  5  

....V.  8  

..  55 

xv  :  1,  2... 

....V.  3  

..  58 

xv  :  2  

 M.  M  

..  22 

xvi  :  6  

....E.E  

..  190 

xvi  :  10  

....E.E  

..  378 

xvi  :  54. . . 

....V.  6  

..  125 

xx  :  41.... 

....E.  E  

..  88 

xxxiii  :  5 . . 

....V.  4  

..  240 

xxxiii  :  22. 

....E.  E  

..  6 

xxxiv  :  16.. 

....V.  4  

..  Ill 

xxxiv  :  26  . 

....V.  1  

..  134 

xxxiv  :  26.. 

....M.  M  

. .  55 

xxxv  :  10  . 

....E.  E  

..  48 

xxxvi  :  26. 

....E.E  

..  230 

xxxvi  :  26  . 

....V.  5  

..  81 

xxxvi :  27. 

....V.  6  

..  186 

xxxvi :  37 

....M.  M..;  

..  50 

DANIEL. 


Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

iii  :  16,  18. 

....E.E   . 

.  ..177 

v  :  27 . 

, .  .  M.  M  

....  164 

ix  8  

 E.  E  

....  166 

x  :  11  

 E.  E  

  278 

xi  :  32   

 M.  M  

....  217 

xix  :  26  . . . 

 E.E  

....  16 

HOSEA. 

iii  :  1   

....M.  M  

....  35 

v  :  7  

....E.E  

....  349 

v  :  15  

 E.  E  

....  208 

vii  :  8  

M.  M  

....  175 

vii  :  11 

T  E 

....  148 

viii  :  12  . . . 

!*.!>'.  i'.'.'.W" 

  123 

x  :  12  

....E.  E  

....  92 

xi  :  4  

....E.E  

....  141 

xii  :  10  ... 

 V.  5  

....  112 

xii  :  12  

....  327 

xiii  :  5  .... 

 E.  E  

xiv  :  4   

 M.  M  



xiv  :  8   

 M.  M  

....  252 

JOEL. 

i  :  3  

 E.E  

194 

ii  :  8  

....E.E  

201 

ii  :  11  

....E.  E  

....  207 

ii  :  13  

 M.  M  

....  353 

AMOS. 

ix:  9  

 M.  M  

....  172 

ix  :  13 

 V.  7  

 227 

OBADIAH. 

i  :  11   

 M.  M  

JONAH. 

i  :  3  

 E.E  

  56 

i  :  12,  13  . . 

 V.  8  



ii  :  9  

 V.  3  

 1 94 

....  57 

iv  :  9  

 M.  M  

 195 

MICAH. 

ii  :  10  

 M.  M  

  38 

ii  :  13  

 M.  M  

  237 

iv  :  1  

 V.  6  

  216 

 E.E  

58 

INDEX  TO  SCRIPTURE  TEXTS. 


405 


MICAH. 

Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

v  :  4  

 M.  M  

...  232 

v:  4.... 

 V.  8  

. . .  131 

NAHUM. 

256 

i  :  3  

 E.E  

...  53 

i:  3  

 V*  3 

 359 

HABAKKUK 

i  :  3  

 V.  6  

422 

256 

iii  :  2  

 V.  3   

iii  :  6  . . .  , 

 M.  M  

...  347 

r/T7T>TT  K  TVTT  1  XT 

LiL.r  MAIN  1AU. 

i:  5  

 M.M  

. . .  319 

iii  :  17  . . . 

 V.  6  

. . .  297 

HAGGAI. 

i:  9  

 M.  M  

300 

ii  :  17 

 E.E  

218 

ZECHAEIAH. 

i  :  8  

 M.  M  

...  270 

i  :  12,  13. 

E  E 

  55 

i  :  20  . . . .' 

!.'e.e!!!.!... 

...  342 

iii  :  1  .... 

 M.  M:  

...  332 

iv  :  10  ... 

 E.E  

 333 

vi  :  13  . . . 

. . . . .  .M.  M  

...  174 

x}  ■  ^  ■ • •  • 

 E.E  

....  272 

xiv  :  7  . . . 

 V.  4  

....  275 

xiv  :  7  . - . 

 M.  M  

. . . .  278 

xiv  :  8  . . . 

.  .,...M.  M  

183 

MALACHI. 

mm  .  M.M  

iii  :  6   

 M.  M  

 307 

 V.  4  

MATTHEW. 

i :  21 

 M.  M  

39 

i:  21 

 E.E  

39 

iii  :  7... 

 M.M  

. . . .  56 

Chap.  &  verse.  Page 

iii  :  16  E.  E   63 

iv  :  1  E.  E..   51 

v  :  9  E.  E   77 

v  :  43.  M.  M   72 

vi  :  9  M.  M   303 

vi  :  9  V.  5   96 

vi  :  26  M.  M   26 

vii  :  7  M.  M   340 

viii  :  11,  12  V.  1   296 

ix  :  6  E.  E   224 

ix  :  37,  38   V.  10   167 

x  :  1  V.  10  167 

x:  22  V.  8  150 

x  :  25  E.E  317 

x  :  30  V.  5   370 

x  :  34  E.E   365 

xi  :  5  V.  3   149 

xi:  19  ..V.  8   206 

xi:  25  E.E   36 

xi:  28....  M.  M   351 

xi :  28  V.  9   437 

xi  :  28  V.  6   366 

xii  :  15  M.  M   128 

xii:  20  E.E   202 

xii  :  20  V.  2   246 

xiv:  14  E.E   315 

xiv:  26  V.  9   476 

xiv:  30   EE   14 

xv  :  23  E.E   285 

xv  :  26,  27  V.  10   360 

xv:  27  E.  E   87 

xvi:  16  V.  9   54 

xvii  :  8  V.  9   419 

xix:  16  E.  E   154 

xix  :  19  V.  4   428 

xx  :  8  E.  E   357 

xxi :  28-32   V.  9   186 

xx:  23   S.  S   382 

xxii :  42  E.E   366 

xxii:  42  V.  10  107 

xxiv:  39  E.E   308. 

xxv  :  22  V.  4  129 

xxvi:  39  M.  M   82 

xxvi  :  56  M.  M   87 

xxvii:  4  V.  3   250' 

xx  vii  :  14  M.  M   93 

xxvii:  51  M.  M   110 

xxviii:  1  E.E   197 

xxviii:  6  V.  1   211 

xxviii :  20  M.  M  132 

xxviii  :  20  E.E   363 

MARK. 

i :  18  E.  E   173  , 

i  :  30  M.  M   246 

i:  41  M.  M   243 


406 


INDEX  TO  SCRIPTURE  TEXTS. 


MARK. 


Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

11 :  4  

. .  M.  M  

  251 

iii :  13  

.  .M.  M  

... ..  254 

iv :  36  

. .  M.  M  

  258 

V-:  ^n*'  'no  

. .  V.  3  

  389 

vn  :  27,  28. . . . 

. .  V.  10  

 360 

viii  :  38  

.  .E.  E  

  86 

?x  [  |q  

. .  E.  E  

  241 

}x  "   

. .  M.  M  

 261 

ix  :  23   

.  .E.  E  

  222 

ix :  23  

.  .E.  E  

  269 

x :  13-16  

..V.  8  

  36 

X  •  at  \  'o 

.  .E.  E  

  54 

x.:  ^„   

. .  V.  6  

 399 

xi :  13  

.V.  8  

  168 

xi :  22  

..M.  M  

  67 

xii  :  30  

..V.  4  

  301 

xiv  :  72  ... . 

M  M 

212 

xv  :  23  

..E.  E. 

.....  233 

xvi :  9  

..E.E  

....  198 

xvi :  9  

..E.  E  

  223 

xvi :  15,  16... 

..V.  8  

  11 

xvi :  16  

..E.  E  

  281 

LUKE. 

ii  :  18  

.  .E.  E  

  26 

ii :  19  

.  .E.  E  

  27 

ii :  20  

.  .E.  E  

  28 

iii :  4.  

.  .E.  E  

  3 

iv :  18  

. . M.  M. . . . . . 

  330 

v  :  4  

.  .M.  M  

  282 

v  :  16-26  

. .  V.  9  

 456 

vi :  12  

.  .E.  E  

  319 

viii  :  13  

. .  M.  M  

  11 

viii :  42  

.  .E.  E  

  217 

viii :  47  

. .  E.  E  

  45 

ix  :  42  

. .  V.  2  

  296 

x  ;  ^  

. .  E.  E  

  84 

x.:  40  

.  .E.  E  

  24 

xi :  4  

.  .E.  E  

  40 

xi  :  27,  28  

.  .M.  M  

  176 

xn  :  1  

. .  V.  6  

  334 

xiv  :  10  

. .  M.  M  

  358 

xv  :  2  

.  .E.  E  

  259 

xv  :  10  

. .  V.  6  

  47 

xv :  17  

. .  V.  9  

  284 

xv  :  18  

.  .E.  E  

  49 

xv  :  18  

. .  V.  3  

  252 

V.  4 

xviii  :  1  

.'.'e."e.*  '.'.'.['.'. 

.....  320 

xviii :  13  

..V.  5  

  147 

xix  :  10  

..V.  6  

  92 

xix  :  40  

..E.E  

  83 

xxii :  32  

..E.  E  

  11 

xxii :  44  

..M.  M  

  83 

xxii :  46  

..E.E  

  299 

Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

xxii :  48  

..M.  M  

  85 

xxiii  :  26  

.  .M.  M  

  96 

xxiii :  27  

.  .M.  M  

 ,  100 

xxiii  :  31  

. .  M.  M 

99 

xxiii:  33  

..M.  M  

101 

xxiv :  16  

..E.  E  

 305 

xxiv  :  27  

..E.  E  

  18 

xxiv :  29  

..S.S  

 413 

xxiv  :  33,  35. . 

.  .E.  E  

 146 

xxiv :  38  

.  .E.  E   

  297 

xxiv  :  45  

..E.E  

  L9 

JOHN. 

i :  14  

..E.  E  

  131 

i :  16  

..M.  M  

  27 

i :  41  

..E.E  

  50 

ii :  9,  10  

..V.  5  

  270 

ii :  9,  10  

..V.  5  

  289 

iii  :  2   

..V.  3  

  210 

iii  :  7   

..M.  M  

  66 

iii:  13  

.  .E.  E  

  85 

iii :  18  

..V.  7  

  259 

iii:  18  

..V.  7  

. .  -. .  277 

iv  :  44  

..V.  4  

  11 

iv:  48  

..E.E  

  248 

iv :  48  

..V.  7  

  141 

v :  1-9  

.  .V.  9  

.   225 

v:  8  

..E.E  

..  ..  128 

v:  13   

..M.  M.  

 129 

v  :  39  

..E.E  

  161 

v  :  39  

..E.  E  

 162 

vi :  37  

..E.  E  

  212 

vi :  37  

..E.E  

 213 

vi:  39,  40  

..V.  10  

  186 

vi:  55  

.  V.  9  

  143 

vi :  63  

..V.  6  

 283 

vi :  67  

..M.  M  

 297 

vii :  37  

..M.  M  

 367 

viii :  36  

..V.  8  

  187 

x  :  9  

.  ,E.  E  

 354 

x  :  9  

..T.  E  

  41 

x  :  27  

..E.E  

  264 

x  :  28  

..M.  M  

 168 

xi  :  4  

..E.E  

  232 

xii  :  2  

.  .E.E   

 328 

xii  :  21  

..E.  E  

  108 

xiii :  5  

..E.E  

 300 

xiv:  14  

.  .M.  M  

  280 

xiv  :  16,  17. . . 

V.  1 

  45 

xiv  :  21  .  .\  . . . 

..M.  M  

  183 

xiv  :  26  

..V.  1  

  66 

xiv  :  26   

..E.E  

  288 

xv  :  4  

..E.E  

  69 

xv  :  4  

..M.  M  

  318 

xv  :  9  

..E.E  

  78 

xv :  19  

.M  M  

 302 

INDEX  TO  SCRIPT  UK  E  TEXTS. 


407 


JOHN. 


Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

xv  :  22  

. .  .V.  5  

....  420 

xvi:  15  . 

.  .E.  E  

....  298 

xvi :  32  

. .  .M.  M  

  81 

xvi :  33  

. . .  M.  M  

....  124 

xvii  :  15  

...  .M.  M  

....  123 

xvii :  17  

. . .  M.  M  

....  186 

 182 

xvii :  23  

 M.  M  

. . .  213 

...  82 

M.  M  

....  86 

E.  E  

....  205 

xix  :  5   

...V.  2  

 328 

xix  :  16   

...M.  M  

....  94 

xx  :  17  

...V.  6  

413 

xxi  •  16 

*"v  i6 

322 

xxi :  12 

.M.  M  

290 

xxi :  17  ..... 

...S. S  ....... 

272 

A01fc>. 

• 

M  °  

 E.  E  

....  314 

11  :  4  

. .  M.  M  

....  171 

ii :  47  . 

.  ..V.  10  

....  48 

iv :  13  

. . .  M.  M  

....  42 

iv :  13  

. . .  V.  1  

....  252 

v :  31  

. . .  M.  M  

....  113 

iviii :  30  

—  E.  E  ...  

  52 

viii :  37  

. .  .E.  E  

....  240 

ix  :  11   

. . .  M.  M  

. . .  308 

ix  :  11  

.  .V.  1  

....  170 

x :  36   

. . .  V.  9  

....  402 

x :  38  

.  .E.  E  

  211 

x.:..^  " "  

. . .  V.  6  

.   31 

xiu  :  39  

—  M.  M  

....  136 

xiii :  40  

. . .  V.  l  

....  321 

xiv  :  9,  10 . . . 

. .  .V.  8  

....  241 

xiv :  22  

. .  ,M.  M  

  68 

jdv  :  22 

. .  .E.  E   

 147 

xvi :  14  

...E.E  

....  347 

xvi :  31  

...V.  7  

....  28 

xvii :  6  

...V.  5  

....  402 

xviii  :  10  

...M.  M  

....  339 

xxiv :  15  .... 

.  ..V.  2  

 262 

xxiv  :  25  .... 

. . .  V.  4  

....  193 

xxvi  :  14. . . . 

. . .  V.  6  

  61 

xxvii  :  23 ... . 

. .  .E.  E  

  101 

ROMANS. 

i:  7  

...M.  M  

.  .187 

3ii  :  24  

...V.  3   

-iii :  26  

...M.  M  

iii :  31  

...E.  E  

....  25 

m :  20  

...M.  M  

...  79 

v:  8  

.  .V.  2  

....  410 

Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

vi  :  6  

..E.E  

..  151 

vii :  13  

..V.  10  

127 

vii  :  13  

..M.  M  

..  71 

viii  •  1 

.  .E.  E  

44 

vjjj '.  y 

..V.  1.... ..... 

..  230 

viii  :  12 

M  M 

34 

viii  :  17  

!!m.  m 

.'.  135 

viii :  23  

..E.  E  

..  341 

viii :  23  

..E.E 

231 

..e'.  e'. 

"  176 

..M.  M  

,  218 

viii  :  30 

M.  M 

149 

viii  :  30  

..E.  E  

. .  287 

viii  :  31  

..V.  8.  .... 

. .  354 

viii  •  31 

V  6 

156 

viii :  33 

..E.E 

210 

viii  :  34  

.".E.E*  ".*.".*. '.*.".  ". 

112 

..V.  6  

..  156 

viii :  37  

..M.  M  

114 

ix  :  15 

E  E 

332 

xii :  2  

..E.E  

..  290 

xiv  :  8   

.  .M.  M  

. .  162 

xv :  13  

..V.  1  

. .  112 

I  CORINTHIANS. 

..V.  2  

..  217 

i :  23,  24   

..V.  1  

. .  85 

i  :  24  

..V.  3  

..  375 

i  :  26-29  

..V.  8  

..  297 

i:  28  

..M.  i\I  

,  342 

i  :  30  

.E.E  

..  271 

ii:  12  

..E.E  

..  60 

iii  :  1   

..M.  M  

293 

iii :  23  

. .  M.  M  

12 

iv:  7  

-..V.  6  

78 

vii :  20  

.  E.E  

..  180 

ix  :  22  

..E.E  

344 

x:  4  

..V.  2  

312 

..M.  M  

117 

xv  :  20  

. .  M.  M  

..  131 

xv  :  35-38   

..V.  7  

..  194 

xv  :  45  

..M.  M  

,  362 

xv  :  48  

..M.  M  

..  341 

xv  :  56,  57  

..V.  1  

..  274 

H  CORINTHIANS. 

i:  5  

..M.  M  

.  43 

v  :  21  

..M.  M  

..  95 

408 


INDEX  TO  SCRIPTURE  TEXTS. 


II  CORINTHIANS. 


Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

vi  :  16.. . 

..M.  M  

...  126 

vi:  17... 

..M.  M  

  255 

..M.  M  

,  51 

vii  :  10.. 

..M.  M  

...  287 

viii :  9  . . 

..M.  M  

. . .  359 

viii :  9 . . . 

..V.  4  

364 

xi :  22  . . 

..E.E  

158 

..M.  M  

64 

.M.  M  

309 

GALATIANS. 

ii :  10  . . . 

..M.  M  

. . . .  77 

ii :  20  . . . 

..M.  M  

. . . .  364 

ii :  20  . . . 

..E.E........ 

....  351 

iii:  10... 

.  V.  4  

  223 

iii :  13  . . 

..V.  2  

....  280 

..M.  M  

....  78 

..V.  2  

120 

..M.  M  

263 

v  :  17  . . 

..M.  M  

....  154 

v:  18  ... 

..E.  E  

 252 

..M.  M  

 262 

EPHESIANS. 


i  ■  s  

 M.  M  

130 

i  ■  C,                       M   M...   2fi7 

i:  7  

 E.  E  

...  334 

i :  7  . . . . 

 V.  7  

...  62 

i  :  11 

 M.  M  

215 

i :  ll..-.--. 

 E.E  

...  30 

i  :  14.... 

 M.  M  

...  202 

i  :  19,  20 

 E.E  

...  254 

ii:  1.... 

 V.  3  

...  325 

ii  :  19... 

 M.  M  

...  192 

ii:  22... 

 V.  6  

...  437 

iii  :  8  . .  . 

 E.E  

...  62 

iii :  8 

 E.  E  

...  237 

iii :  8  ... 

 E.  9   

.  245 

iii :  17  . . 

 V.  E  

...  238 

iii :  19  .. 

 M.  M  

...  88 

iv  :  15 

 M.  M  

294 

iv :  30... 

 M.  M  

...  326 

v  :  30 

 V.  10  

9 

vi:  18... 

 M.  M  

...  37 

PHILIPPIANS. 

i  :  21.... 

 M.  M  

...  7 

i:  27.... 

 E.  E  

...  145 

ii  :  8.... 

 E.E  

...  155 

ii :  9-11  . 

 V.  2  

...  136 

Chap.  &  verse.  Page 


12. 

V.  9 

34 

ii  : 

15* 

250 

g 

M  M 

288 

iii 

10 

 E.  E  

329 

iv 

7  . 

 V.  4  

397 

iv 

11 

 M.  M  

47 

iv 

12 

 M.M.?  

.  41 

COLOSSIANS. 

i : 

5  ,. 

 M.  M  

276 

j . 

28  . 

 M.  M  

28 

ii  : 

6. . 

 M.  M  

313 

6.. 

 M.  M  

314 

ii  : 

9,  10  M.  M  

'.  139  • 

ii  : 

10. 

 S.  S  

.  217 

ii  : 

15. 

 V.  7  

.  110 

iii 

:  4  . 

M  M 

.  223 

iii 

:  24 
:  2  . 

!!*.."."!'.e.'  e  '.".".*.**.!!":. 

iv 

 M.  M  

2 

I  THESSALONIANS. 

i  : 

4  .. 

 M.  M  

.  199 

ii  : 

18. 

 E.  E  

.  221 

iv 

:  14 

 ...M.  M  

.  181 

iv 

:  17 

 M.  M  

.  345 

v : 

 M.  M  

65 

v  : 

6.. 

 V.  4  

.  316 

v : 

6  .. 

 V.  1  

.  344 

8.. 

 T.  E  

93 

^r 

24 

 M.  M  

346 

V 

25  . 

 M.  M  

!  189 

II  THESSALONIANS. 

i : 

3  . 

 V.  5  

.  129 

ii 

13, 

14   V.  2  

.  66 

ii 

.  16 

 E.  E  

.  225 

I  TIMOTHY. 

iii 

:  16 

 E.  E  

..  156 

vi 

:  17 

 M.  M  

137 

II  TIMOTHY. 

i  :  9  E.  E   164 

i :  12  V.  7   79 

ii :  1  M.  M   75 

ii  :  11  M.  M   301 

ii:  12  E.E   186 

ii:  19  E.  E   174 

iv  :  8  M.  M   10 

iv  :  18  E.  E   195' 


INDEX  TO  SCRIPTURE  TEXTS. 


409 


TITUS. 

Chap.  &  verse. 

i:  2  V.  8... 

iii:  4  M.  M.. 

iii :  9  M.  M. . 


PHILEMON. 


Page 
,.  316 
.  156 
.  324 


verse  15 

.'...'.V.  10  

302 

HEBREWS. 

i  :  14  

•  •  T7 

277 

ii :  18. . . . 

. . . .  ins 

iv  :  9  

 MM 

 ™  z~  

*  *  * "  «!i 

v :  7  

 ~J: 

• • • •  %7 

v  :  8  

 M.  M  

. . . .  by 

vi :  6  . .  . 

.'. .  ..V.  1  

 364 

v5ii:  10  .. 

 V.  9  

 172 

ix :  20  ... 

 V.  9  

117 

ix  :  22  . . . 

 V.  3  

 283 

si :  6  . . . . 

 V.  3  

. . .  256 

xi :  13 

 E.  E  

123 

xi :  31   . . 

*  V  *.  3 

....  269 

 M.  M  

180 

xii:  11... 

 E.  E  

....  139 

xii:  23... 

 E.  E  

....  136 

xii  :  24. . . 

 M.  M  

  108 

xii  •  24 

V  5 

65 

 E.  E  

175 

X'i''  ■  5  "  " 

.M.  M.  .  Y. '. 

52 

xiii '  5   * " 

M  AI  " 

54 

xiii :  8 

.....V.  4  

178 

V  6 

xiii :  13  . . 

 M.  M  

  97 

xiii  :  20  . . 

 V.  7  

  212 

JAMES. 

v:  16  .. 

 E.E  

...  37 

I  PETER. 

i :  2  

 M.  M  

194 

i:  6  

 V.  5  

211 

i  :  7  

 M.  M  

317 

i  :  19. 

 M.  M  

107 

i  :  23  25.. 

 V.  9  

 362 

5  :  23 

 E.  E  

125 

ii:  3  

 M.  M  

 142 

ii:  7  

 V.  6  

....  350 

Chap.  &  verge. 

ii:  7  

v:  7  

v  :  10  

v:  10  


.E.E.., 
.M.  M. 
.M.  M.. 
.V.  7.- 


II  PETER. 

i:  4  M.  M   209 

i  :  4  M.  M   260 

i  :  4  E.E   179 

i :  5,  6  M.  M   208 

i  :  10,  11  V.  3   343 

iii:  18  M.  M   4 

iii:  18  M.  M   46 

iii:  18  V.  6   319 

I  JOHN. 


 M.  M   328 

 E.  E   206 

 V.  5  222 

 S.  S   155 

 E.  E   246 

 E.E   280 

  M.  M  138 

 M.  M   44 

 E.E   157 

 M.  M   127 

 M.  M   36 

 V.  6   171 

 M.  M   163 

 V.  5   319 

 V.  9   304 

 V.  10   223 


:  7.... 
:  7.... 


:  19  . 
:  4.., 


II  JOHN. 
....M  M   299 


III  JOHN, 
verse  3  M.  M. . . 


JUDE. 

verse  1  M.  M   ...  194 

verse  20  E.E   281 

verse  24  M.  M   2S4 

verse  24  M.  M   283 

REVELATION. 

i:  13  E.E   343 

ii  :  4   E.  E   42 

iii:  4  M.  M   34i 


410 


INDEX  TO  SCKIPTURE  TEXTS. 


EEVELATION. 

Chap.  &  verse. 

Chap.  &  verse. 

Page 

xiv  :  1  

.  .M.  M. 

iii  :  7  . . 

 E.  E  

...  167 

xv :  3  

..V.  3.. 

iii :  14 

E.  E 

...  110 

xvi :  15  

..E.E.. 

iii  :  19  V. 

'.'.'.'.'.'.'.£  e""".""".!." 

. . .  159 

xx :  12  

..V.  7.. 

iii :  19. . 

 V.  4  

...  333 

xxi :  1  

..E.E.. 

iii :  20. . 

 E.E  

...  116 

xxi :  23  

..M.  M. 

iv  :  4 

 E.  E  

...  255 

xxi :  23  

..M.  M. 

v:  6.... 

 E.E  

...  114 

xxi :  23  .  

..V.  8.. 

xi :  4  . . . 

 V.  5  

...  164 

xxii :  2  

..T.  E.. 

xi :  12  . . 

 E.E  

...  38 

xxii:  17  

..M.  M. 

xii  :  7... 

 E.E  

...  337 

xxii:  17  

..V.7.. 

INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS. 


Page 

Abel,  the  sacrifice  and  death  of.M.M  20 

"Abide  in  me"  E.E  69 

"  Abide  with  us  "  E.E  43 

Absolution  V.  8  69 

Absolution  V.  5  158 

Accepted  in  the  beloved  M.M  267 

Account  of  judgment,  Personal. V.  4  137 

Achan  V.  3  249 

Acquaintance  with  God  E.E  129 

"  Acquaintance  with  God  "  M.M  217 

Acts,  The  acceptance  of  a  Christian's 

 V.  6  198 

Adam,  The  last  M.M  362 

"Added  to  the  Church/'  what  it  im- 
plies V.  10  56 

Adoption,  The  Spirit  of  V.  5  107 

Adversity,  The  Good  of  E.  E  68 

Advocate,  The  holv  spirit  an...V.  1  70 

^Eneas  of  Lidda  V.10  379 

Affection,  inordinate  V.  4  338 

Affection,  undivided  V.  9  332 

Affection  M.M  281 

Age.  time  of  peculiar.. . :  V.  2  365 

A^ed.  The  God  of  the  V.  2  361 

Alarum,  The  V.  9  342 

Altar  versus  puloit  V.  3  157 

Amen  E.E  110 

Angel,  The  V.  5  40 

Angels  at  the  Bethel,  The  V.10  290 

Angels  and  providence.  The  V.  2  192 

Angels,  The  Judgment  of  the  ..V.  6  54 

Angels,  ministering  spirits  M.M  277 

Aneels,  ministers  of  comfort    .V.  5  199 

Angels,  The  ministrations  of. .  .E.E  101 

Ansrer  M.M  195 

An'eer.  Slow  to  E.E  53 

Annovances.  Little  T.E  200 

Anointed  Saviour,  Jesus  the  . .  .V.10  384 

Apostolic  work,  Style  of  V.  1  332 

Arab,  Anecdote  of  street  V.  6  58 

Argumentum  ad  hominem,  The  V.10  370 
Ark,  Different  kinds  of  animals  in 

the  V.  4  14 

Ark,  Noah's  M.M  157 

Ark,  Size  of  the  V.  4  3 

Ark,  The  V-  5  367 

Ark,  The  parable  of  the  V.  4  1 

Arms.  The  Everlasting  M.M  316 

Arnold  ,  V.  9  63 

Asa,  The  error  of  King  V.10  73 

Assurance,  V.  4  81 

Assurances  V.  5  144 


Page 

Assurance,   an  evidence  of  union 

with  Christ  S.  S.  220 

Assurance,  Full  E.E  65 

Assurance,  aud  love  M.M  247 

Atonement.  The  blood  of  V-  2  113 

Atonement,  The  dav  of  V.  2  104 

Atonement,  The  limit  of  V.  4  220 

Atonement,  vitiated.  The  M.M  190 

Attributes  of  God,  The  V.  7  67 

Autumn  S.  S  164 

Avarice    V.  5  280 

Awake,  How  to  keep  V.  9  352 

"  Awake,"  iiow  to  keep  V.  1  &59 

A  wheel,  Providence  like  V.  2  190 

IB. 

Babel  building  V.  3  307 

Babes  in  Christ  M.M  293 

Baca,  The  Valley  of  S.  S  317 

Backsliders,  The  V.10  204 

Backsliding.  Praver  against  M.M  305 

Bakers,  The  V.  5  123 

Balaam                                  .V.  3  244 

Balaam  V.  9  265 

Banner,  Our  TE  165 

Banner,  The  Cross  our  T.E  167 

Banquet,  Satan's   V.  5  270 

Baptism  and  remission  of  sin  .  .V.  9  124 

Baptism  a  refreshment  of  faith. V.  8  33 

Baptism,  Covenant  of  S.  S  243 

Baptism  not  Regeneration  V.  8  24 

Baptism  not  the  Dook  of  Christ's 

kingdom    T.E  43 

Baptism  of  children  not  administered 

-by  disciples  V.  8  39 

Baptism  the  avowal  of  faith  V.  8  31 

Baptism,  The  effects  of  V.  7  151 

Baptism  in  the  Prayer  Book  V.  8  20 

Baptismal  Regeneration.,  V.  8  12 

Baptismal  Service  in  Praver  Book 

 V.  8  65 

Baptists,  The  old  confession  of  faith 

of  V.  2  70 

'•Base  things,"  The  V.  8  309 

Battle,  Thoughts  on  the  last.... V.  1  274 

Battles,  The  Lord's  E.  E  111 

Belief.  The  Christian's  V.10  346 

B  __ii:ir.  How  to  go  a  V.10  394 

Beggar,  The  blind  V  6  399 

Belief  and  Baptism  V.  7  151 

Believer  a  saved  man,  The  V.10  232 

Believer's  challenge,  The  V.  6  156 


412 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS. 


Page 

Believer's  confidence,  The  V.  5  439 

Believer's  testimony  V.  6  179 

Believers   only   to    be    added  to 

church  V.10  55 

Benediction,  A  new  year's  V.  7  11 

Bereavements  V.  2  20 

Bereavements  ;...V.  8  122 

Bereavements,  Sudden  V.  7  331 

Bethel,  Our  S.  S  201 

Bethel,  The  God  of  V.10  282 

Bible,  a  place  of  emptiness,  The.S.S  371 

Bible,  a  wonderful  book,  The. .  .T.E  235 

Bible,  God  the  author  of  the.. .  .V.  1  25 

Bible,  how  treated  V.  1  39 

Bible,  Authority  of  the  V.  1  29 

Bible,  The  V.  1  23 

Birth  of  Christ  ..M.M  361 

Birthright,  not  the  door  of  Christ's 

kingdom   T.E  43 

Bitter  waters  sweetened  V.  9  383 

"  Bread  enough  and  to  spare  "  .V.  9  284 

Black  clouds,  Bright  blessings  .T.E  225 

Blessings,  Covenant  V.  6  230 

Blood  of  A.bel  V.  5  66 

Blood  of  Christ,  Price  of  the  . . .  V.  5  65 

Blood  of  Lamb,  Efficacy  of  the.V.  5  305 

Blood,  Shedding,  the  V.  3  283 

Blood-sprinkled  safe.  The  V.10  248 

Blood,  The  avenger  of  V.  3  108 

Blood,  The  sprinkled  V.10  244 

Body.  The  members  of  the  V.10  14 

Boasting,  excluded  by  faith  ...V.  7  289 

Bodies,  transformation  of  V.  7  200 

11  Born  again  "  E.E  72 

"  Born  again  "  V.  7  163 

Bread.  The  children's  V.10  373 

Brethren,  The  accuser  of  the...V.  7  98 

Brewer  V.  5  125 

I  h  i -ht  side,  Look  on  the  M.M  161 

Broad  wall,  The  V.  9  98 

'•Broad  wall,"  The  T.E  22 

Broken  bones  V.  4  124 

Broken  hearts  V.  2  19 

Brotherhood  of  Christians  V.  5  104 

Brotherly  Kindness  V.  6  331 

Bruised  reed  V.  2  247 

Builder  of  Temple,  Christ  the.  .M.M  174 

Banyan,  John  V.  6  75 

Bunyan's  preaching  V.  4  193 

Burial  Service  of  Church  of  England, 

The...  V.  8  70 

Business,  Mind  your  own  V.  7  105 

Butcher  V.  5  124 

Builder  V.  5  126 

"By-path  Meadow"  rougher  than 

King' s  Highway  V.  10  85 

C. 

Caesar's  money  V.10  111 

Called  V  1  100 

Calling  and  Election  V.  3  345 

Oalumnv,  Malicious  V.  1  199 

Calvary,  A  visit  to  V.  2  328 

Calvinism  V.  2  69 


Calvinism  V.  5  90 

Candidates,  Examination  of  T.E  45 

Care  M.M  147 

Care  cast  on  God  M.M  6 

Carey,  Rev.  William  M.M  242 

Carnal    mind,    The    serenity  of 

the  V.  1  233 

Carried  by  four  V.  9  456 

Ceremony  dispensed  with  V.  9  404 

Chaff  driven  away,  The  V.  7  2«)3 

Champion,  Jesus  our  T.E  179 

Chastening,  Comfort  under  V.  4  344 

Chastisement  not  punishment.  .V.  7  73 

Children  brought  to  Christ  M.M  261 

Children  brought  to  Christ  not  to  the 

font  V.  8  36 

Children  converted  V.  8  48 

Children,    Examples   of  convert- 
ed  V.  2  348 

Children  may  be  Christians  V.  2  346 

Children   not    baptized   by  disci- 
ples  V.  8  38 

Children  not  brought  to  Christ  for 

baptism  V.  8  38 

Children,  Salvation  of  V.  7  158 

Children,  Teaching  V.2  345 

Choice,  God's  strange  V.  8  297 

Christ,  a  curse  for  us  V.  2  290 

Christ  a  friend,  why  ?  V,  3  15 

Christ  a  man,  the  power  of  God  V.  3  383 
Christ    a    man,    the    wisdom  of 

God  V.  3  383 

Christian  army,  The  V.  5  388 

Christ  and  the  Scriptures  E.E  18 

Christ  a  sacrifice  for  sin  V.  4  217 

Christ  as  a  friend  V.  9  261 

Christ's  blood  soul  drink  V.  9  150 

Christ  in  work,  Communion  with 

 E.E  130 

Christ,  Company  of  lost  M.M  19 

Christ,  Complete  in  S.  S  217 

Christ,  The  condescension  of...  V.  4  364 

Christ,  conformity  to  V.  9  452 

Christ  crucified  V.  1  85 

Christ.  David  a  type  of  T.E  247 

Christ's  death,  Intention  of  V.  6  99 

Christ's  death.  Object  of  V.  6  105 

Christ  decreed,  Death  of  V.  4  211 

Christ's  death,  the  act  of  God.  .V.  4  214 

Christ's  death,  the  Father's  will  V.  4  212 

Christ  died  for  sinners  V.  2  416 

Christ  died  not  for  himself  E.E  16 

Christ  died  once  for  all  V.  5  308 

Christ  displeased  V.  8  42 

Christ  ever  faithful  V.  6  298 

Christ,  Exaltation  of  V.  2  136 

Christ  exalted  by  God  V.  2  146 

Christ's  flesh  meat  indeed  V.  9  144 

Christ  glorified  V.  4  377 

Christ  glorious  V.  9  248 

Christ  glorious,  Preach  V.  8  131 

Christ,  his  fullness  E.E  79 

Christ,  How  to  find  V.  3  101 

Christ,  Immutability  of  V.  4  178 

Christ  in  the  Christian  M.M  213 

Christ  is  all  V.  9  429 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS. 


413 


Page 

Christ  King  E.E  118 

Christ,  Knowledge  of  M.M  177 

Christ  knows  believers  E.E  4 

Christ  made  a  spoil  of  V.  7  112 

Christ  meat  and  drink  V.  9  152 

Christ,  Merits  of  V.  7  25 

Christ,  The  most  eloquent  of  preach- 
ers V.  4  99 

Christ  mystical,  the  second  rock  V.  2  321 

Christ  on  the  cross  V.  7  118 

Christ,  Opposition  to  vain  V.  6  73 

Christ  our  life  M.M  223 

Christ    personal,    The   first  rock 

was  V.  2  313 

Christ,  Poverty  of  M.M  359 

Christ,  Preaching  E.  E  62 

Christ  precious  to  believers  V.  8  261 

Christ  precious  V.  6  350 

Christ's  property  M.M  12 

Christ,  Purpose  of  V.  6  93 

Christ,  Kelationship  to  S.  S  302 

Christ  the  representative  of  his  peo- 
ple  V.  9  180 

Christ  rich  V.  4  365 

Christ,  Second  coming  of  E.  E  86 

Christ  soul  meat  V.  9  149 

Christ,  Suffering  for  V.  7  60 

Christ,  "The  Breaker  "  M.M  237 

Christ,  The  death  of   V.  4  209 

Christ  the  faithful  promiser  V.  4  101 

Christ  the  greatest  of  all  prophets 

and  teachers  V.  4  98 

Christ  the  heavenly  bridegroom  M.M  204 
Christ  the  power  and  wisdom  of 

God  V.  3  375 

Christ   the   property   of    the  be- 
liever V.  2  396 

Christ  the  rock  V.  2  214 

Christ,  This  rock  was  V.  2  312 

Christ,  The  savior  of  E.  E  88 

Christ,  The  songs  of  E.  E  84 

Christ  the  substituting  sacrifice  V.  9  129 

Christ  the  wooer  V.  4  103 

Christ  thirst-satisfying  M.M  280 

Christ,  To  live  is  M.M  7 

Christ  Triumphant  V.  7  110 

Christ,  Unsearchable  riches  of.V.  9  254 

Christ,  Variety  in  V.  6  255 

Christ  was  rich  V.  4  368 

Christ,  What  think  ye  of  ?  V.10  107 

Christ,  Witness  of,  confirmed.. V.  2  217 

Christ  wonderful  in  past  V.  5  17 

Christ  wonderful  in  present  V.  5  24 

Christ  in  glory,  wounds  of  . . .  .E.  E  114 

Christ's  youth,  The  dew  of  V.  6  249 

Christian,  A  fallen  V.  5  250 

Christian,  Independence  of  the.E.  E  99 

Christian  light  in  the  world  M.M  250 

Christians  like  Christ  V.  1  253 

Christian,  The  noble  birth  of  a.E.  E  124 

Christian's  progress,  The  V.10  215 

Christian's  portion,  The  E.  E  136 

Christian's  prayer,  The  V.  5  157 

Christians  separate  from  world  M.M  255 

Christians,  Weak  V.  7  17 

Christians  when  liable  to  sleep.  V.  1  355 


Page 

Christians  without  comfort  V.  5  204 

Christmas  M.M  360 

Christmas  sermon  V.  5  389 

Chrysostom  V.  7  204 

Church  M.M  313 

Church,  conspicuous,  The  V.  6  219 

Church,  a  building,  The  V.  6  440 

Church,  Additions  to  the  V.10  48 

Church  admired,  The  M.M  337 

Church,  a  glorious  temple,  The  V.  6  450 

Church  a  habitation,  The  V.  6  445 

Church,  A  Holy  Ghost  V.10  60 

Church,  A  national  M.M  331 

Church  and  State,  The  V.10  109 

Church,    A    broad    wall  around 

the  T.  E  23 

Church  in  the  house  M.M  306 

Church  of  Christ,  The  V.  1  134 

"  Church  of  Englandism  "  V.  8  26 

Church  spotless;  The  M.M  338 

Church  a  blessing,  The  V.  1  136 

Church  and  rit  ualism,  The  early  V.10  51 
Church  concealed,  The  glory  of  M.M  270 

Church,  The  prayer  of  the  V.  6  26 

Church  to  be  a  blessing,  The. . .V.  1  147 

Church,  The  willing  V.  6  227 

Church,  Trials  of  the  V.  8  138 

Church,  Union  with  the  V.  7  167 

Church  venerable,  The  V.  6  220 

Church,  The  wonderful  future  of 

the  V.  5  28 

Churches,  Apostolic  V.  1  337 

Citizens  of  heaven  M.M  192 

City  of  God  M.M  222 

City  of  refuge  E.E  35 

City  propertv,  Christ's  M.M  339 

"  Clean,  I  will  ;  be  thou  "  M.M  248 

"Come  and  welcome"  V.  7  344 

Comfort,  Means  of  V  5  209 

Comfort  proclaimed  V.  5  197 

Comfort,  Words  of  E.E  55 

Comforter,  The  V.  1  66 

Commandment,     The     first  and 

great  V.  4  301 

Commandments,  Ten,  broken.. V.  9  162 
Commandments  broken,  The  ..V.10  129 

Communion  preserved  S.  S  413 

Communion  with  God  V.  9  140 

Communion  with  Jesus  S.  S  293 

Concealment,  A  gracious  V.  2  212 

Condemnation,  No  E.  E  44 

Conduct,  How  a  man's  comes  home 

to  him   V.10  203 

Confession  and  absolution  V.  5  147 

Confession  of  sin  E.  E  49 

Confession  of  sin  V.  5  149 

Confession,  Unreserved  E.E  94 

Confidence,  Paul's  V.  7  91 

"Confirmation"  unauthorized. V.  8  68 

Conflict,Praise  after  a  S.  S  339 

Convictions,  Doubtful  S.  S  60 

Conscience  V.  4  20C 

Conscience  a  barrier  against  sin  V.  5  189 

Conscience,  A  natural  S.  S  64 

Conscience  not  God's  vicegerent  V.10  128 
Consecrated  man,  Danger  of  the  V.  5  246 


414 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS. 


Page 

Consecrated  man,  Strength  of.. C.  5  239 
Consecration,    Forms    of  person- 
al  S.  S  245 

Consecration,  how  broken  V.  5  248 

Consecration,     the     privilege  of 

all   V.  5  243 

Consolation  of  Israel  V.  4  104 

Continuance    with    Jesus  possi- 
ble V.  9  54 

Conversion,  An  old-fashioned  .  .V.10  147 

Conversion,  Instantaneous  V.  7  231 

Conversion,  Marks  of  S.  S  179 

Conversion,  Mr.  Spurgeon's  V.10  393 

Conversion,    The   modus  operandi 

always  the  same  V.lo  152 

Conversion,  The  time  of  our  T.E  173 

Conversions,  Extraordinary  V.  7  236 

Conversion,  Instantaneous  V.  9  240 

Counselor  V.  4  106 

'■  Counselor,11  The  V.  5  31 

Counselor  to  us  V.  5  45 

Counselor  with  God,  A  V.  5  32 

Courage  E.E  132 

Covenant,  An  everlasting  M.M  356 

Covenant,  Christ  is  the  V.  2  395 

 M.M  3 

Covenant,  God  mindful  of  V.  6  238 

Covenant,  The  V.  9  172 

Covenant,  The  blood  of  the  ....V.  7  212 
Covenant,  The  eternal  surety  of  V.  4  97 

Covenant,  The  everlasting  V.  7  220 

Covenant,  The  scope  of  the  V.  6  242 

Covenant,  The  sure  M.M  239 

Covenant,  Those  interested  in  it 

the  V.  9  174 

Covenants,  Written  :.S.  S  243 

"  Covet,  Thou  shalt  not11  V.10  138 

Covetousness  V.  6  127 

Crimean  Soldiers  V.  2  18 

Cripple  at  Lystra,  The  V.  8  241 

Cross,  taken  up,  The  E.E  54 

Cross,  The  bearer  of  the  T.E  169 

Crosses  no  curses  V.  8  115 

Crumbs  of  mercy,  The  E.E  87 

Cruse  of  widow,  The  E.E  59 

Cumbered  with  much  serving  .  .E.E  24 
Curse  removed,  The  V.  2  280 

D. 

Darkness,  Times  of  V.  6  177 

David  an  example  T.E  247 

David  and  Goliah  T.E  256 

David  and  his  Volunteers  T.E  270 

David,  The  folly  of  M.M  210 

David's  first  victory  T.E  247 

David's     work,     David's  anoint- 
ing  T.E  259 

Death  V.  9  265 

Death-bed  conversions  S.  S  79 

Death,  Fear  of  V.  7  38 

Death,  Remember  V.  7  126 

Death,  Sudden  V.  7  334 

Death  the  fruit  of  sin  T.E  184 

Death,  The  results  of  V.  7  132 

Death,  The  second  V.  7  369 


Page 

Death,  The  terrors  of  V.  7  131 

Death,  The  warnings  of  V.  7  133 

Deception  abhorred  of  God  V.  8  183 

Deceptively  submissive,  The...V.  9  200 
Deliverance,  Past,  an  argument  in 

prayer  E.E  21 

Deliverance  from  snares  M.M  24 

Deliverance  proclaimed  V.  4  236 

Delight  of  the  Lord,  The  M.M  265 

Desertion  V.  2  20 

Desertion  of  Christ  M.M  297 

Desertion,   The   causes   of  appar- 
ent S.  S  378 

Desire,  The  Christian's  M.M  322 

Despair,  The  repentance  of  V.  3  250 

Destitution,   Extremity   of  human 

 V.10  97 

Devil's  defeat,  The  V.  2  308 

Devotion,  Ardent  V.  9  336 

Disappointment  V.  2  22 

Diseases.  God  sends  V.10  81 

Disgrace,  The  Christian's  V.  5  249 

Disobedient,  The  avowedly  V.  9  189 

Distrust  of  God  M.M  291 

Divine  guidance  M.M  245 

Divine  nature,  Partakers  of  the  M.M  260 

Door  in  ark  V.  4  11 

Doctrine,  Absence  of  sound  V.  3  85 

Doctrines  of  the  Gospel  V.  8  245 

Dogs,  The  little  V.10  360 

Door,  Christ  the  T.E  33 

Door,  The  only  T  E  41 

Double-minded  man,  The  V.  3  244 

Doubts  and  fears  V.  7  37 

Doubts  and  fears..  M.M  325 

Dove,  A  silly  T.E  148 

Dove,  Noah's  E.  E  29 

Dream,  Pharaoh's  M.M  185 

Drelincourt  on  death  V.  7  127 

Duplicity  hateful  to  God  M.M  319 

Dwelling  place  V.  2  8 

Dying  hour,  The  V.  7  169 

E. 

Early  converts  and  church  member- 
ship* V.10  52 

Earnests  of  future  bliss,  The  . .  .S.  S  209 

Economy  false  M.M  300 

Effectual  grace  V.  9  216 

Eirypt  and  Israel  V.  7  160 

Election   V.  2  66 

Election  M.M  199 

Election   V.  8  804 

Election  M.M  342 

Election,  Absolute  V.  2  76 

Election  as  an  obstacle  .,  V.  2  298 

Election  a  source  of  comfort . .  .V.  8  229 

Election  a  source  of  joy  V.  1  52 

Election  a  stripping  doctrine. .  .V.  2  83 
Election  in  the  case  of  Onesimus  V.10  304 

Election  no  discouragement  V.  8  222 

Election,  Particular  V.  3  343 

Election,  Personal  V.  2  79 

Election,  Prayer  a  proof  of  V.  1  184 

Election,  Eternal  V.  2  78 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS. 


415 


Page 

Elijah  only....  V.  9  426 

Emotions  and  the  cross  V.  2  335 

Enemies  of  Christians,  The  M.M  203 

End  hetter  than  the  beginning, 

The  M.M  366 

End,  Endnre  to  the  V.  8  150 

Enemies,  destroyed,  Spiritual. . -E.E  97 

Enmity  against  God  V.  1  230 

Envy  an  archer  V.  1  196 

Ephesus,  The  Church  of  V.  5  164 

Ephraim  M.M  175 

Ephraim,  The  race  of  T.E  149 

Erring  saints,  A  rebuke  for  V.  8  59 

"Esprit  de  corps'1''   of  Christians, 

The  T.E  289 

Established  church,  a  spiritual  tyran- 
ny, An  V.10  100 

Estate,  Sin  against  one's  V.  2  243 

Esther,  why  made  Queen  V.  5  249 

Eternal  life  given  M.M  168 

Evans,  Eev.  Christmas  V.  5  347 

Evening  of  life  clouded,  The  . . . V.10  82 

Evening  and  the  morning,  The  M.M  153 

Evening  time  of  Christ  V.  4  276 

Everlasting,  His  ways  are  M.M  347 

Everlasting,  From  E.E  58 

M  Ever  with  the  Lord  "  M.M  345 

Everybody's  sermon  V.  5  112 

Evil  and  its  remedies,  The  V.  5  222 

Evil,  Hatred  of  M.M  159 

Evil  tidings  M.M  259 

Exaltation  of    Christ  a  comfort. 

The  V.  2  138 

Excitement,  Religious  V.  7  61 

Excuses,  Frivolous  V.  4  247 

Excuses  of  sinners,  The  V.  4  227 

Expiation  V.  8  96 

Experience  a  master  doctor  ....V.10  44 

Experience,  Christian  V.  6  172 

Experience,  Personal   V.  3  392 

Experience,  Praise  for  E.E  28 

Experience,  A  sad  M.M  224 

Experiences,  Former  gracious  ..S.S  199 

Experiences,  Great  .  /T.  M.M  253 

IP. 

Facts  of  the  gospel,  The  V.  8  244 

Faith  V.  3  256 

Faith  V.  6  328 

Faith  ....M.M  238 

Faith  and  life  M.M  364 

Faith  and  the  law  E.E  25 

Faith  and  pleasing  God  V.  1  364 

Faith  and  prayer  V.  7  145 

Faith,  An  illustration  of  V.  3  104 

Faith  a  receiving,  A  life  of  M.M  313 

Faith  illustrated  V.  7  79 

Faith,  its  grandeur  V.  7  81 

Faith,  Justified  by  V.  7  279 

Faith,  Little  V.  7  36 

Faith  never    disputes    with  the 

Lord  V.10  367 

Faith  not  works  V.  1  374 

Faith,  No  union  with  Christ  with- 
out V.  1  376 


Page 

Faith,  The  obedience  of  V.  7  156 

Faith  of  the  Fathers,  The  V.  7  15ft 

Faith,  Rahab's  V.  3  269 

Faith,  Saving  V.  8  248 

Faith,  The  secret  strength  of.. M.M  190 

Faith,  The  diseases  of  V.  7  152 

Faith,  The  exploits  of  T.E  128 

Faith,  The  ground  of  V.  7  286 

Faith,  The  inventions  of  M.M  251 

Faith,  The  justification  of  V.  7  87 

Faith,  The  marks  of  V.  7  141 

Faith.  The  obedience  of  E.E  128 

Faith,  The  object  of  V.  7  261 

Faith,  The  reason  of  V.  7  264 

Faith,  The  result  of  V.  7  273 

Faith,  These  all  died  in  E.E  123 

Faith,  Trial  of  M.M  317 

Faith,  The  stages  of  V.  7  142 

Faith  the  stooping  grace  V.  1  373 

Faith,  The  venture  of  S.S  150 

Faith,  The  warrant,  of  V.  7  269 

Faith,  The  walk  of  M.M  314 

Faith,  The  wisdom  of  E.E  126 

Faith,  Union  with  Christ  by  V.  3  266 

Faith,  The  victory  of  V.  1  289 

Faith,  what  it  is  V.  7  31 

Faith  wins  her  suit  V.10  376 

Faithfulness  of  God  M.M  346 

Falling,  God  keeps  from  M.M  283 

Falsehood  V.  8  321 

Falsehoods  of  Satan  V.  2  302 

Farmer,  The  V.  5  123 

Fatherhood  of  God   and  prayer, 

The  V.  5  108 

Father,  Our  M.M  303 

Fatherhood  of  God.  The  V.  5  96 

Father's  house.  The  V.  9  287 

"  Fatness,  Thy  paths  drop  "  .  ..M.M  292 

Fear  dishonors  God  V.  4  361 

Fear  excluded  V.  7  290 

Fear  not  V.  4  350 

Fear  of  evil,  Delivered  from  M.M  188 

Fear  of  God  E.E  22 

Fears  groundless  V-  7  283 

Feast  of  the  Lord,  The  V.  5  289 

Felix  trembling  V.  4  199 

Fellowship  with  Jesus  M.M  235 

Fenelon  .'.".V.  9  63 

Fire,  The  barley  field  on  V.  8  112 

First  love  E.E  42 

"  First  love  "  V.  5  166 

First  love.  Declension  from  V.  5  164 

First  love  restored  V.  5  175 

Fletcher  quoted  V.  9  152 

Fellowship  of  Jesus,  The  silent. E.E  36 

Flight  the  safety  of  the  weak.  .M.M  207 

Forethought  in  labor  for  souls. V.  9  462 

Forgiveness,  The  privileges  of .  V.  7  75 

Form  and  spirit  of  religion.  The  V.  5  353 

Form  of  religion  important,  The  V.  5  355 

"  Forsake  me  not  "  M.M  146 

Fox,  George  V.  8  34 

Frailty,  Human  T.E  79 

Free  grace  V  3  393 

Freely,  Come  and  drink  M.M  165 


416  INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS. 


Page 

Ereeness  of  gospel,  The  V.10  87 

Friend,  A  faithful  V.  3  11 

Friend,  The  despised  S.S  9 

Friend  Jesus,  The  S.S  59 

Friend,  The  sinner's  V.  8  206 

Fruit  lor  Jesus  M.M  275 

Fruit  hearing  V.  7  299 

Fruits  meet  for  repentance  V.  7  41 

Fruitfulness  of   union   to  Christ, 

The  MM  252 

GK 

"  Gadding  about,"  The  sin  of.  .V.  9  70 

Garden,  The  King's  E.E  103 

Gentleness  of  Christ,  The  T.E  90 

Gentleness,  The  Divine  E.E  100 

Gently  or  not  gently  V.  4  225 

Gladness   E.E  46 

Gladness  they  work  through. .  .M.M  227 
Glorified  in  heaven,  The  state  of 

the  V.  8  285 

Glory,  A  view  of  God's  V.  2  204 

Glory,  Near  to                     . .  .M.M  149 

Glory  of  God,  The  ....M.M  201 

God  cannot  do,  What  V.  8  310 

God's  claim  V.  4  310 

God,  Delight  in  M.M  166 

God's  eye  upon  the  sinner  V-  9  213 

God.  Far  from  V.  4  147 

God  glorified  V.  9  472 

God.^Glory  to  be  given  to  M.M  229 

God  great  in  power  V.  3  317 

God's  instruments  insignificant  V.  6  20 

God  is  with  us  V.  8  355 

God,  Meditation  on  V.  4  39 

God,  My  V.10  343 

God  of  Battles,  The  M.M  160 

God's  people  lifted  up  E.E  106 

God.  Proving  V.  4  21 

God  slow  to  anger  V.  3  361 

God  stooping  to  his  creatures.  .M.M  272 

God  the  ail-seeing  one  V.  4  161 

God,  I  will  be  their  M.M  9 

"  God,"    The    meaning    of  the 

word  V.10  355 

God,  The  perfection  of  V.  7  253 

God,  The  unchangeableness  of. M.M  307 

God,  Will  a  man  rob  ?  V.10  76 

Godly,  Those  who  do  not  profess  to 

be  V.  9  193 

Good  and  evil  divided,  The  M.M  5 

Good  King,  Christ  the  T.E  63 

Good  man,  who  he  is  V.10  219 

Good  men,  why  they  die  E.E  82 

Good  news  V.  6  75 

Good  Shepherd,  The  provision  of 

the                                   V.  4  86 

Good,  Working  together  for... M.M  218 
Gospel  difficult  to  understand,  The 

freeness  of  V.10  91 

Gospel  rejected,  The  V.  1  89 

Gospel  a  power,  The  V.  1  104 

Gospel,  The  sin  of  rejecting  the  V.  5  425 

Gospel  the  wisdom  of  God,  The  V.  3  378 

Giant-killer,  The  V.10  262 


Page 

"  Grace  abounding,"  quoted ...  .S.S  13 

Grace,  An  evidence  of  S-S  122 

Grace,  Distinguishing  V.  6  78 

Grace,  Dying  V.  7  39 

Grace,  Feelings  no  measure  of  .V.  6  324 

Grace,  Growth  in  V.  6  319 

Grace,  Growth  in  M.M  4 

Grace  of  God  in  case  of  Onesimus, 

The  V.10  304 

Grace  of  Jesus,  The  kind  V.  4  94 

Grace,  Plentitude  of  V.  4  92 

Grace,  Proportionate  V.  5  58 

Grace,  The  treasures  of  V.  7  62 

Gratitude,  The  love  of  S.S  274 

Gratitude,  Wondering  V.10  34 

Greeks,  Specimens  of  V.  1  91 

"  Grit  "  V.  7  57 

Guyon,  Madame  V.  9  63 

Ground,  The  enciianted  V.  1  344 

Growth  in  Grace  M.M  294 

Growth  in  knowledge  V.  6  326 

Guidance   V.  9  111 

Gunpowder  Plot,  The  M.M  310 

JX. 

Habitation,  The  glorious  V.  2 

Hard-heartedness,  Universal  E.E  115 

Harvest  men  wanted  V.10  167 

Harvest  time  V.  2  232 

Harvests  of  joy,  The  three  V.  2  234 

Harvests  of  sorrow.  The  three  .V.  2  234 
Haughtiness  and  Destruction. E.E  66 

Head  of  the  Christian,  The  T.E  103 

Headship  of  Christ,  The  M.M  341 

"  Healer,"  Christ  the  V.10  386 

Healing  for  the  wounded  V.  2  18 

Healing.  Instantaneous  E.E  45 

Hearer,  The  occasional  V.  8  81 

Hearer  in  trouble,  The  V.  8  83 

Hearing,  Faith  comes  by  V.  8  243 

Heart  and  Head  S-S  236 

He.-.rt's  devices  V.  4  172 

Heart,  Hardness  of  V.  7  33 

Heartrending  M.M  353 

Hearts,  Searching  of  V.  4  170 

Heart,  The  altar  of  the  M.M  197 

Heart,  The  human  V.  4  167 

Heart,  The  new  V.  5  81 

Heart,  The  secrets  of  the  new  .M.M  323 
Heart  turned  upside  down,  The  V.  5  415 

Heart,  Without  T.E  152 

Heart  work  prosperous  E.E  75 

Heathen,  The  trial  of  the  V.  9  399 

Heaven  and  hell  V.  1  296 

Heaven  a  place  of  rest  V.  3  140 

Heaven  a  place  of  service  V.  3  142 

Heaven  a  state  of  acceptance  with 

God  V.  3  144 

Heaven,  The  attractions  of  V.  9  222 

Heaven,  Fitness  for  V.  5  299 

Heaven  in  disguise,  A  V.  8  79 

Heaven,  The  communion  of....V.  3  147 

Heaven,  The  company  of  V.  1  299 

Heaven,  The  manifestation  of  .V.  3  145 
Heaven,  The  rest  of  V.  1  298 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS.  417 


Page 

Heaviness  and  rejoicing  V.  5  211 

Heir  of  salvation,  Mark  of  Y.10  258 

Hell  V.  1  313 

Hell  and  destruction  V.  4  166 

Hell,  The  back  way  to  M.M  178 

Helmet,  The  T.E  93 

Help,  A  very  present  E.E  124 

Help  Lord   M.M  169 

Help  promised  M.M  16 

Herbert,  A  song  of,  George  V.10  127 

Herbert,  George,  quoted  S.S  134 

Heritage    and    watchword,  The 

Saints'  V.  2  152 

Hero,  The  fainting  E.E  194 

Hieh  priest,  Joshua  the  M.M  332 

Hiu:h  priest,  A  spotless  V.  2  107 

Higher  and  higher  M.M  358 

Hill,  Mr.  Rowland  V.  7  157 

"Him,  In"  S.S  219 

Hither,  Come  up  E.E  38 

"Hitherto".  M.M  365 

Holy  Ghost,  Filled  with  the  . .  ,M  .M  til 
Holy  Ghost.  The  indwelling  of  .V.  1  58 
Holy  Ghost,  Personality  of" the. V.  1  45 

Holy  Ghost,  The  power  of  V.  1  112 

Holy  spirit  V.  9  291 

Holy  spirit  and  apostolic  times. V.  1  339 

Holy  spirit  grieved  MM  326 

Holv  spirit,  Goodness  of  the  E.E  47 

Holy  spirit,  The  descent  of  E.E  63 

Holy  spirit,  The  inward  power  of 

  V.  1  123 

Holy  spirit's  method,  The  V.  6  34 

Holy  spirit,  The  outpouring  of  the 

 V.  6  31 

Holy  spirit,  The  power  of  V.  6  28 

Holy      spirit,      quickeneth  The 

word  V.  6  290 

Holy  spirit,  The  revelations  of  .E.E  60 
Holv  spirit,  The  withering  work  of 

the  V.  9  362 

Holv  spirit,  The  work  of  the..  .V. 10  229 

Holy  spirit's  work,  The  V.  6  186 

Holv  things,  Iniquity  of  M.M  8 

Home  V.  2  9 

Home,  God  our  M.M  315 

Home,  Going  V.  3  389 

Honor  involved  in  salvation,  God's 

 V.  2  25S 

Hope  EE  107 

Hope,  Heavenly  M.M  276 

Hope  for  the  viiest  V.  5  93 

Hospitalities  of  the  God  of  grace 

 V.  8  69 

House  of  feasting,  The  V.  2  88 

House  of  mourning,  The  V.  2  88 

Houses  consecrated  to  God  V.10  63 

Houses,  Religion  in  V.  1  264 

How  long  ?  V.  3  182 

Human  nature,  The  tendency  of  V.  9  386 

Human  power  limited  E.E  81 

Humility  E.E  96 

liumilixv.  True  V.10  30 

Hunger  and  Christ  V.  9  146 

Husband,  The  love  of  a  E.E  80 

Hypocrisy   .T.  6  334 


Page 

Hypocrite,  The  M.M  363 

Hypocrite,  The  "Honest"  V.  7  101 

Hypocrites  to  be  laughed  at  V.  9  193 

I. 

Idolatry,  The  best  antidote  to. .  .S.S  250 

Idolatry,  Great  danger  of  S.S  422 

Ignorance  ot  Christ  S.S  29 

Imitators  of  him  V.  1  252 

Increase  of  church  by  crowds. .  .V.10  49 

Increase  of  church  gradual  V.10  49 

Incredulity  V.  4  185 

Incurable,  An  V.10  382 

Indecision,  Absurditv  of  V.  3  185 

Influence  V.  9  111 

Inheritance.  The  E.E  30 

Inheritance,  The  earnest  of  the  M.M  202 

Iniquity,  The  sight  of  V.  6  423 

Inquirer,  The  anxious  V.  3  90 

Instantaneous  conversion  illustra- 
ted  V.  9  241 

Insincere  man,  The  V.  3  247 

Intercessor,  A  lesson  to  every.. V.10  378 

Intercessor,  The  V.  4  105 

Imitation,  An  earnest  V.  6  109 

Israel,  The  salvation  of  M.M  21 

Iron  did  swim.  The  E.E  13 

Itineracy,  The  V.  1  336 

Isaac  and  Ishmael  V.  2  129 

Israel  in  Egypt  V.  3  419 

J". 

Jacob  and  Christ  M.M  327 

Jacob,  The  promise  to  E.E  133 

Jacob,  The  star  of  E.E  7 

Jacob,  The  star  of  V.  9  104 

Jansenius  V.  9  63 

Jairus'  The  daughter  of  V.  3  227 

Jealous v  of  God  M.M  256 

Jerusalem,  Safety  of  V.  9  97 

Jesus  a  wonder  V.  9  113 

Jesus  and  the  promises  V.  4  293 

Jesus  a  power  V.  9  432 

Jesus  as  master  V.  9  431 

Jesus  at  Bethesda  V.  9  225 

Jesus,  his  beauty  M.M  173 

Jesus  desired  S.S  99 

Jesus  desired,  Hopeful  signs  of  .S.S  107 

Jesus  the  herald  of  glory  V.  9  114 

Jesus  hiding  himself  S.S  354 

Jesus,  Looking  to  V.  5  253 

Jesus,  Looking  to  the  ascension 

of  V.  5  264  ♦ 

Jesus,  Looking  to  the  death  of  .V.  5  257 

Jetus,  Looking  to  the  life  of  . . . V.  5  254 
Jesus,  Looking  to  the  resurrection 

of  V.  5  262 

Jesus,  Looking  unto  M.M  180 

Jesus,  Love  to  S.S  241 

Jesus,  very  man  V.10  15 

Jesus,  None  but  V.  7  259 

Jesus,  None  but  V.  7  276 

Jesus  no  phantom  V.  9  476 

Jesus  only  ..V.  9  419 


418 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS. 


Page 

Jesus  our  David  E.E  272 

Jesus  pardoning  S.S  155 

Jesus,  the  power  of  V.  9  469 

Jesus  sought  E.E  108 

Jesus,  The  tender  care  of  E.E  120 

Jesus,  The  gracious  lips  of  V.  4  92 

Jew  is  the  type  of  the  Christian, 

The                                    E.E  31 

Jews,  Specimens  of  V.  1  93 

Job  V.  3  252 

John  the  Baptist  V.  9  364 

Jonah,  The  flight  of  E.E  56 

Joseph  V.  1  192 

Joy  at  conversion  S.S  175 

Joy  in  God  E.E  1 

Joy  in  sorrow  V.  5  217 

Joylessness  V.  7  39 

Judas  V.  3  250 

Judge,  Christ  the  V.  4  107 

Judgment,  Christ  coming  in  M.M  289 

Judgment,  The  account  at  V.  4  139 

Judgments    of    God  fathomless, 

The  V.  9  131 

Judson,  Dr.  Adoniram  V.  5  305 

Just,  The  resurrection  of  the... V.  2  265 

Justice  and  goodness  V.  ?  371 

Justification,   The  blessedness  of 

 V.  4  67 

Justification  by  grace  V.  3  295 

Justification,  Characteristics  of  V.  3  303 
Justification,   Other  blessings  go 

with  V.  4  65 

Justification,  The  manner  of  giv- 
ing  V.  3  305 

Justification,  Instantaneous  V.  4  63 

Justification  irreversible  V.  4  63 

Justice  V.  3  359 

Justified  by  faith  M.M  269 

li. 

Kidron,  The  brook  M.M  152 

King  Asa,  A  lesson  from  the  life 

of  V.10  68 

King's  highway  opened,  The...V.  7  28 

Knowledge  of  Christ,  A  partial.  V.  10  383 

Knowledge  of  Christ,  The  M.M  288 

Knowledge  without  faith  V.  1  369 

Hi. 

Labor  and  revival  V.  7  232 

Labor  for  Christ  V.  4  355 

Labor  in  vain  V.  8  335 

fi  Lamb,  The  exaltation  of  the..  .M.M  17 

Lambs,  Care  of  the  E.E  135 

Lamb,  The  spotless  V.  5  306 

Lamb  the  light,  The  V.  8  278 

Lamb  the  light  of  heaven,  The. M.M  216 
Latter-day  glories,  A  vision  of . .  V.  6  216 

Law  satisfied  by  Christ,  The  V.  1  290 

Law,  The  curse  of  V.  2  281 

Law,  The  demands  of  the  V.  1  287 

Lazarus  V.  3  228 

Leaf,  A  frail  E.E  79 

Leaves,  Nothing  but  V.  8  168 


Page 

Lebanon,  The  cedars  of  MM  226 

Leper,  The  cleansing  of  the  ...  .V.  7  311 

Leprosy  M.M  273 

Leprosy,  The  E.E  57 

Liberality  of  God,  The  M.M  182 

Liberator,  The  great  V.  8  187 

Liberty,  False  V.  8  196 

Liberty  forever  V.  8  203 

Liberty  in  Christ  M.M  263 

Liberty  in  Christ  E.E  55 

Liberty  of  self-righteousness,  The 

 V.  8  198 

Liberty,  Professional  V.  8  197 

Liberty  within  grasp  V.  8  202 

Lie,  God  cannot  V.  8  316 

Life,  A  review  of  V.  4  258 

Life,  A  struggle  for  S.S  170 

Life,  Foretaste  of  heavenly  V.  3  138 

Life  in  the  wilderness  V.  2  3 

Life,  its  brevity  and  sorrow  E.E  70 

Life  of  faith  M.M  262 

Ltfe  of  gayety,  A  V.  7  179 

Light  at  evening  time  V.  4  275 

Light  at  evening  time  M.M  278 

Light,  God  sees  the  E.E  5 

Lion-slayer,  The  V.10  262 

"Little  Faith"  V.  5  129 

Little  Foxes  M.M  151 

Little  ones,  Salvation  of  the. . .  .V.  2  259 

"Little  ships,  Other"  M.M  258 

Living  for  self  V.  5  248 

"  Loaves  and  fishes,"  The  V.  9  143 

"  Look  "  for  salvation  V.  1  13 

Lord's  dealings,  Memory  of  the  V.10  265 

Lord,  Hand  of  the  E.E  6 

Lord,  Live  unto  the  M.M  162 

"Lord  of  all"  V.  9  414 

Lord  reigneth,  The  M.M  225 

Lord  save  me  E.E  14 

Lord,  The  sword  of  the  M.M  264 

Lord,  Thus  saith  the  V.  8  55 

Lord,  Wait  on  the  M.M  243 

Losses  V.  8  121 

"Lost"  V.  6  101 

Lost  found,  The  V.  4  123 

Lost  sheep,  Time  of  finding. . .  .V.  4  111 

Lot,  Casting  ot  the  M.M  354 

Love  V.  5  319 

Lovely,  Altogether  V.  7  323 

Love,  An  everlasting  M.M  355 

Love's  commendation  V.  2  410 

Love,  Constraining  M.M  295 

Love,  Freeness  of  God's  M.M  296 

Love's  logic  S.S  272 

Love's  logic  V.  9  304 

Love,  Obedient  V.10  41 

Love  of  Christ  E.E  78 

Love  of  David,  The  V.10    39  " 

Love  of  God,  The  wonderful. ..  E.E  32 

Love  of  Christ,  The  E.E  8 

Love,  The  parentage  of  true  V.  5  321 

Love,  Perfecting  V.  9  319 

Love,  The  believer's  M.M  220 

Love,  The  measure  of  our  V.  4  308 

Love,  The  revival  of  V.  9  316 

Love,  The  root  of  V.  9  307 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS.  41 9 


Page 

Love,  The  Saviour  resting  in  his  V.  6  297 

Love  to  Christ  M.M  163 

Love  to  Christ  indispensable. .  .V.  10  333 

Love-token,  The  sacred  V.10  243 

Love,  The  walk  of  V.  5  329 

"  Lovest  thou  me?"  V.10  322 

M. 

"Made  whole,"  A  man  V.10  391 

Magdalene,  The  manifestation  to 

  V.  6  412 

Man,  The  Son  of  E.E  85 

Man's  sin,  The  barriers  against  V.  5  181 

Manasseh   V.  3  311 

Manasseh  an  unbeliever  V.  3  318 

Manasseh  as  a  convert  V.  3  322 

Manna,  The  M.M  198 

Marah  V.  9  382 

Marriage  a  blessing  of  Eden  V.10  17 

Marrow  and  fatness  V.10  28 

Master  Key,  The  E.E  lib 

Master,  Men  think  God  a  hard.  .V.10  90 

Matchless  mystery,  The  V.10  9 

"  Me,  Come  unto  "  M.M  351 

Meditation  a  profitable  exercise  V.  4  40 

Meditation,  Importance  of  V.  9  328 

Meditation  sweet  V.  4  52 

Meditation  E.E  27 

Meditation  S.S  148 

Meditation  ....  M.M  228 

Meditation  M.M  28(5 

Meek  and  lowly  one,  The  V.  6  367 

Memory,  affection  and  intellect. E.E  27 
Memory  of  God's   dealings  with 

us  V.10  264 

Memory  of  mercies  M.M  191 

Men,  Apostolic  V.  1  323 

Men  but  men  at  the  best  V.10  71 

Men  in  all  time  alike  V.10  14b 

Mercy  V.  3  359 

Mercy  of  God  humbling,  The  ..V.10  33 

Mercy  of  God,  The  M.M  230 

Mercy,  Sovereign  V.  1  148 

Merit  a  teaching  of  all  human  re- 
ligions V.10  93 

Message,  The  minister's  V.  8  57 

Mighty  acts,  Story  of  the  V.  6  13 

Mighty  God,  The  name  of  the..V.  6  142 

"  Mighty  to  save,"  proven  V.  3  409 

"  Mignty  to  save  "  M.M  14 

"  Mighty  to  save,"  what  then  ..V.  3  416 

Millennial  period,  The  V.  8  280 

Ministering  angels  V.  5  200 

Minister's*  authority,  The  V.  8  58 

Ministers,  Prayer  for  M.M  189 

Minister,  The  work  of  the  Chris- 
tian  V.10  177 

Ministers,  Thorns  to  V.  6  295 

Ministers  to  be  prayed  for  V.10  179 

Ministry,  A  Holy  Ghost  V.10  58 

Miracle^  A  double  V.  9  471 

Miracles,  The  necessity  of  V.  6  186 

Missions,  Gospel  V.  1  321 

Monster  dragged  to  light,  The.  V.10  127 

Moses,  The  grave  of  V.  4  163 


Page 

Moses  only  V.  9  423 

Moses,  The  prayer  of  V.  2  206 

Moses,  The  song  of  V.  -3  425 

Moses,  The  triumph  of  V.  3  422 

Mothers,  A  lesson  to  V.10  378 

Mother  of  our  Lord,  The  privilege 

of  the  M.M  176 

Mountain  of  the  Lord,  The  E.E  95 

Mouth  of  faith  cannot  be  closed, 

The  V.10  362 

Multitudes  destitute  of  gospel.  .V.10  170 

Myrrh,  A  bundle  of  V.  8  259 

Murmuring  V.  9  389 

My  sister,  my  spouse  E.E  7 

Name,  The  eternal  V.  1  154 

Navarre,  The  King  of  V.  9  179 

Nearer  to  Christ,  Draw  M.M  318 

Negative,  A  fearful  V.  7  296 

'■Nevertheless"   M.M  211 

New  Year,  The  V.  7  11 

News,  Bad  V.  8  91 

Night,  What,  of  the  ?  M.M  219 

Noah's  dove  E.E  73 

'  Now  "  V.  4  31 

Now,  The  Christian's  V.10  350 

Number  "  one  thousand"  V.  9  284 

O. 

Obedience  of  faith,  The  T.E  46 

Obedience  unto  death  S.S  337 

Observation,  Want  of  V.  7  154 

Oil  for  the  linht  M.M  241 

Old  age,  Comfort  for  V.  4  287 

Old  and  new  nature,  The  M  M  154 

Omnipotence  V.  3  359 

Omniscience  V.  2  380 

Omniscience  and  prayer  V.  2  389 

Onesimus  an  instance  oi  grace.  .V.10  304 

Only  begotten.  The  E.E  131 

Open-air  preaching  V.  9  466 

Opinion  without  faith  V.  8  171 

Orpah  and  liuth  M.M  350 

Ordinances  a  check  to  sin  V.  5  189 

Outward  forms,  Superstitious.  .V.  5  360 

Outward  Providences,  Table  of  V.  5  284 

Outsiders,  A  lesson  for  all  V.10  377 

IP 

Paralysis,  Spiritual  V.  9  468 

Pardon  and  justification  V.  4  58, 

Pascal  V.  9  63 

Paschal  supper,  The  V.  9  148 

Pathway,  Our  E.E  31 

Patience,  The  perfect  work  of  .M.M  367 

Peace,  False  V.  7  176 

Peacemakers  ....E.E  77 

Peace,  Means  of  V.  9  308 

Peace,  Negotiations  for  V.  9  402 

Peace,  Terms  of  V.  9  411 

Pearls  S.S  181 

Penitent,  The  doubtful  V.  3  249 


420 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS. 


Page 

Penury  V.  2  21 

People,  A  chosen  M.M  302 

People  of  God  humbled  M.M  22 

People,  Why  was   Christ  one  of 

the  M.M  23 

People  of  God,  The  happiness  of 

the  M.M  271 

People  of  God,  Safety  of  the  ..  .V.  5  303 
People  of  Lord  dear  for  Christ's 

sake  M.M  148 

Perseverance  V.  8  156 

Perfection,  Faith  in  V.  5  437 

Perfection,  Prayer  for  T.  7  12 

Person  of  Jesus,  Love  to  the  S.S  297 

Personal  Christ,  Attachment  to  V.10  323 

Peter  weeping  M.M  212 

Pharaoh  V.  3  242 

Physician,  The  great  V.  9  234 

Physician,  The  great  M.M  246 

Plan  of  salvation,  The  M.M  215 

Pleasures  of  the  Christian  T.E  24 

Poison  drawn  from  healthy  flowers 

 V.10  143 

Pool,  The  stagnant  V.  9  446 

Poor,  Preaching  for  the  V.  3  149 

Portion,  The  Lord  is  my  M.M  320 

 M.M  321 

Portraits  of  sinners  V.  7  180 

Power  of  body  in  the  resurrrection 

 V.  7  202 

Practice  to  be  amended  V.  2  340 

Praise  M.M  304 

Praise  a  duty  M.M  274 

Praise  for  free  grace  V.10  42 

Prayer  M.M  285 

Prayer  M.M  308 

Prayer,  A  lesson  to  the  repulsed 

in   V.10  378 

Prayer  always  available  V.  6  268 

Prayer  an  argument  V.  1  181 

Prayer  answered  V.  7  21 

Prayer,  Continuance  in  M.M  2 

Prayer  for  laborers  the  great  prayer 

 V.10  182 

Prayer,  Intercessory  E.E  37 

Prayer.  Paul's  first  V.  1  170 

Prayer,  Support  in  E.E  107 

Prayer  the  Christian's  extremity  E.  E  15 
Prayer  with  the  Holy  Spirit  ...  .V.  6  292 
Prayers  delayed,  Answers  of. .  .M.M  344 

Prayers,  Answers  to  ,..V.  2  227 

Prayers,  Unanswered  E.E  89 

Preaching.  Apostolic  ,,V.  9  252 

Precious  from  the  vile,  The.r,.V,  7  160 

.  Preciousness  of  Christ  E.E  61 

Presence  of  Christ  M.M  282 

Presence  of  God  E.E  48 

Press-ridden  people,  The.,  V.  3  157 

Presumptuous  sins  deliberate  ..V.  3  436 
Priceless,  Without   price  because 

 V.10  96 

Priest  dispensed  with,  The  V.10  223 

Priests  are  made,  How  V.  8  71 

Pride  V.  5  86 

Pride  V.  5  246 

Privileges  of  Christians  M.M  299 


Page 

Prodigal,  Return  of  V.  4  145 

Profession,  A  fruitless  V.  3  61 

Professors  of  religion,  Chilliness 

of  V.  9  63 

Professors,  False  V.  7  175 

Profligate,  The  V.  5  272 

Progress,  Christian  M.M  208 

Promise,  A  glorious  V.  1  297 

Promise,  Fulfilment  of  E.E  93 

Promise  pleaded,  A  E.E  109 

Promise  pleaded,  The  M.M  15 

Promise  The  great  V.  5  56 

Promises,  Great  M.M  209 

Promises,   Gleaning   in   the  field 

of  M.M  214 

Promises,  How  to  use  S.S  431 

Promises  of  Bethel,  The...  V.10  294 

Prophecy,  The  awful  V.  7  305 

Prophets  sent  one  after  another  V.  9  293 

Providence  V.  5  370 

Providence  is  always  correct  ...V.  2  199 

Frovidence  amazing  ,V.  2  200 

Providence  and  the  angels  V.  2  191 

Providence,  God's  V.  2  188 

Providence  and  Bethel   V.10  293 

Providence  intricate  V.  2  198 

Providence  furthers    God's  pur- 
poses  M.M  13 

Providence  is  God's  sermon  V.  5  113 

Providence  likened  to  a  sea  V.  2  196 

Providence,  Minuteness  of  V  5  373 

Providence,  Preparations  of  V.  5  397 

Providence,  Punctuality  of  V.  5  375 

Providence  uniform  V.  2  194 

Providence,  The  devil's   V.10  78 

Providential  care,  Kindness  of  .V.  5  380 

Proxies  in  Baptism  V.  8  66 

Psalmist  of  Israel,  The  M.M  233 

Punishment  of  sin,  Freedom  from 

 V.  7  288 

Puritan  divines.  The  old   .V.  7  187 

Purposes  of  God  E.E  33 

Q. 

Quarles  (quoted)  V.  9  141 

Queen  and  the  church,  The  V.  8  74 

Questions,  Foolish  to  be  avoided 

 M.M  324 

Question  for  all,  A  V.10  329 

Questions  of  the  day,  The  V.10  107 

R. 

Hansom,  The  effect  of  the  V.  3  301 

Rear,  Bringing  up  the  M.M  200 

Reward  of  the  Church  V.  5  387 

Reasonings,  David's  V.10  272 

Rebukes,  Why  God  V.  4  342 

Redeemer,  Thy  M.M  170 

Righteousness,  A  crown  of  M.M  10 

Redeemer,  Thy  V.  4  290 

Redemption,  General  and  particular 

 V.  6  94 

Refuge,  A  safe  V.  4  290 

Refuge,  Cities  of  V.  3  107. 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS.  421 


Page 

Refuge,  The  sinner's  V.  3  106 

Regrets  without  repentance  V.  8  173 

Reign  of  Christ  perpetual  V.  8  132 

Reign,  The  Millennial  V.  7  371 

Regeneration  V.  3  210 

Regeneration,  Baptismal  V.  8  12 

Rejoicing  in  Christ  M.M  184 

Rejoicing  in  God  M.M  266 

Religion,  Neglecters  of  V.  9  186 

Religion,  Nominal  proiessors  of.V.  9  201 

Religion,  Spiritual  V.  6  283 

Remedy,  Prayer  a  V.  9  392 

"  Remember  me"  E.  E  23 

Remembrance,  A  Psalm  of  V.  6  171 

Remembrance  of  God  M.M  352 

Remembrance.  The  divine  M.M  312 

Remission  of  sin  V.  9  119 

Repentance  and  Godly  sorrow.  .M.M  287 

Repentance,  Genuine  S.  S  81 

Repentance,  Means  of  V.  2  439 

Repentance.  What  necessary  to.  .V.  2  428 

Reservoir,  The  great  V.  4  381 

Resolving,  A  sinner's  V.  4  173 

Responsibility,  Human  V.  5  420 

Responsibility,  of  Church  increased 

by  additions,  The  V.  10  64 

Rest  V.  9  437 

Rest,  remaineth  for  people  of  God 

 M.M  18 

Rest  through  learning  V.  9  449 

Restraint  fought  against  V.10  139 

Resurrection.  Doctrine  of  V.  1  228 


Resurrection  of  Christ,  a  pledge.  V.  2  270 

Resurrection  of  Christ.  Power  of .  V.  1  117 

Resurrection  of  the  dead,  The. .  .V.  2  262 

Resurrection,  Personality  in  the. V.  7  206 


Resurrection,  Priority  of  the  V.  7  364 

Resurrection.  The  V.  7  194 

Resurrection,  The  body  in  the. . . V.  7  196 

Resurrection,  The  first  V.  7  361 

Resurrection,  The  general  V.  1  130 

Resurrection,  The  Spiritual  .V.  3  225 

Revival  sermon.  A  V.  7  228 

Revivals,  sudden  V,  6  19 

Revival,  The  great  V.  5  336 

Revival,  The  promise  of  V.  7  229 

Revival,  The  spiritual  V.  3  374 

Revival  work,  A  stimulus  to  V.  7  239 

Riches  of  Christ,  The  unsearchable 

 V.  9  245 

Riches  of  grace  E.  E  64 

Riches  of  the  promises.  The  V.  4  375 

Right  and  trust  God,  Do  M  M  335 

Right  in  his  people.  God's  M.M  220 

Righteous  desired.The  end  of  the  V.  9  265 

Righteous,  Well  with  the  E.  E  105 

Righteousness,  What  is  your....V.  2  164 

Ripon  answered.  Dean  of  V.  8  63 

Risca,  The  waning  of  V.  7  328 

Ritualism  in  popery  V.  10  225 

Rizpah's  love  tor  her  sons  E.  E  91 

Rock  smitten,  The  V.  2  315 

Rock,  The  high  V.  6  266 

Rooted  in  Christ  T.  E  49 

Root  These  have  no  M.M  11 


Page 

Royal  emblems  T.  E  61 

Rutherford,  Samuel  (quoted)  V.  9  141 

Rutherford,  Samuel  V.  8  265 

Rutherford,  Samuel  (quoted) ....  S.  S  127 

S. 

Sabbath  school,  The  V.  1  144 

Sabbath  schools,  V.  2  350 

Sabbath  school,  Responsibility  to  the 

 V.  4  137 

Sacrifice,  Vicarious  V.  8  349 

"Safe  sailing."  V.  9  135 

Safetv  of  those  who  are  in  Christ  V.10  23 

Saints,  Called  to  be  M.M  187 

Saints,  faultless  before  God  M.M  284 

Saints,  Comfort  for  feeble  V.  2  246 

Saint.  Prayer  of  a  V.  3  444 

Saints,  remains  of  the  dust  of  the  V.  4  164 

Saints — their  present  incapacity.  .S.  S  387 

Saint,  The  repentance  of  V.  3  252 

Salt  M.M  348 

Salvation,  Day  of  E.  E  92 

Salvation  from  wrath  V.  9  36 

Salvation  given  away — not  sold.  .V.10  398 

Salvation,  Immediate  V.10  388 

Salvation  not  apprehended,  Nature  of 

 S.  S  138 

Salvation,  Obstacles  removed  to.V.  3  339 

Salvation  of  the  Lord  V.  3  194 

Salvation,  The  only  means  of  V  4  2 

Salvation,  the  great   question,  Per- 
sonal  V.10  118 

Salvation,  Whose  matter  is  V.  9  41 

Salvation,  The  divine  side  of  the  work 

of  V.10  189 

Salvation.  The  human  side  of. .  .V.10  196 

Salvation.  The  reason  of  V.  3  337 

Salvation  the  will  of  God  V.10  187 

Salvation,  Your  own  V.  9  34 

Samson  conquered  V.  5  237 

Sarah  and  Hagar,  The  allegories  of 

 V.  2  120 

Sarah,  The  daughter  of  M.M  167 

Sarcasm.  The  jeer  of  -  V.  7  45 

Satan  The  comer's  conflict  with.V.  2  296 

Satisfaction  in  Christ  S.  S  231 

Saul,  King  V.  3  247 

Saul  on  his  way  to  Damascus  V.10  138 

Saul,  The  conversion  of  V.  6  61 

Saved,  Who  shall  be  V.  5  37 

Saved,  Why  men  are  V.  3  328 

Saviour,  A  glorious  V.  3  330 

Saviour,  A  mighty  V.  3  404 

Saviour  constrained.  The  S.  S  418 

Saviour's  death,  Effects  of  the. .  .V.  4  221 

Saviour's  praver  for  us,  The  E.E  11 

Saviour,  The  Love  of  the  M.M  156 

Saying.  A  faithful  M.M  301 

Scriptures,  How  to  understand  the. .  19 

Scrip  tures,  how  understood,  The.E  E  52 

Sareuta,  The  widow  of  E.  E  59 

Seasons  of  the  year,  The  S.  S  160 

Secret  purposes,  and  the  open  prom- 
ises of  God,  The  V.10  20  ) 

Secret  sin,  The  great  guilt  of  V.  3  17 1 


422  INDEX  OF 

Page 

See  God,  I  shall  E.  E  10 

Self-deception,  The  fear  of  V.  8  251 

Self-examination  V.  2  11 

Self-examination  E.  E  90 

Self- weakness  .*V.  5  50 

Self-righteous  V.  7  255 

 V.  5  276 

Self-suffering  Y.  5  247 

Sentence  of  guilty  sinners,  The.  .V.  4  230 

Sermon,  An  appropriate  V.  4  195 

Sermon  before  Felix,  Paul's  V  4  193 

Service,  Glad  E.  E  9 

Service,  Strength  for  M.M  279 

Sharon,  The  rose  of  E.  E  122 

Shedding  of  blood,  The  V.  9  117 

«*  Sheep.  The  bleating  of,"  V.  9  453 

Sheep,  The  characterizing  of  the.V.  4  78 

Shepherd-king,  The  M.M  332 

Shepherd,  The  good  V.  4  75 

Sick  healed,  The  V.  4  125 

Sickness,  a  means  of  conversion.V.10  159 

Sifting  of  the  wheat,  The  M.M  172 

Sign  without  substance  V.  8  170 

Significance  of  the  blood  of  Christ, 

The  V.10  253 

Signs  and  wonders  V.  7  153 

Similitudes,  God  speaks  by  V.  5  114 

Sin— a  cloud  E.  E  41 

Sin,  a  loss  V.  5  187 

Sin  and  death  V.  1  276 

Sin  confessed  E.  E  98 

Sin,  The  confession  of  V.  3  241 

Sin  possible,  Freedom  from  V.  8  191 

Sin  immeasurable  V.  7  245 

Sin,  The  nature  of  V.  9  218 

Sin  overruled  V.10  309 

Sin,  Renunciation  of  S.  S  72 

Sin,  Salvation  from  E.  E  39 

Sin,  Sorrow  for  V.  2  25 

Sin,  The  law  the  strength  of  ...  .V.  1  286 

Sin,  The  remedy  of  V.  5  229 

Sin,  The  terrible  deeds  of  V.10  134 

Sin,  Unpardoned  V.  9  468 

Sincerity,  Prayer  a  proof  of  V.  1  183 

Singing,  The  dumb  V.  3  119 

Sinner  powerless,  The  V.10  145 

Sinner  a  sick  man,  The  V.  9  227 

Sinner,  The  hardened  V.  3  242 

Sinners  as  lost  V.  4  113 

Sinners  driven  away  V.  4  120 

Sinners.  Fears  of  V.  4  157 

Sinners  hardened  by  God's  dealing 

 V.10  142 

Sinners,  Union  with  M.M  205 

Sinners  in  Zion.  afraid  V.  8  64 

Sins,  Forgiveness  of  V.10  13 

Sins,  Forgiveness  of  V.  7  72 

Sins,  Little  V.  6  202 

Sins  past,  removed  V.  7  31 

Sins,  Presumptuous  E.  E  76 

Sins,  Presumptuous  V.  3  432 

Sins,  Secret..  V.  3  164 

Sins,  The  danger  of  secret  V.  3  173 

Sins,  The  nursery  of  secret  V.  3  168 


Sisters,  A  lesson  to  uncon verted. T.  E  220 


SUBJECTS. 


Page 

Slave,  A  story  of  a  runaway  V  10  302 

Sleep  in  Jesus,  The  M.M  181 

Sleep  of  beloved,  The  V.  2  234 

Sleep  of  Christians,  The  V.  1  335 

Sleeping  Christians,  awake  V.  1  351 

Sloth  1  V.  4  341 

Smoking  flax,  The  V.  2  248 

Snares  V.  3  42 

Snares,  deliverance  from.  V.  3  51 

Soldier,  The  head  of  the  T.  E  97 

Son,  Freedom  through  the  V.  8  200 

Son  of  man,  The  Mission  of  the.  .V.  6  92 

Songs  in  the  night  V.  2  167 

Sonship  of  Christian  inviolate,  The 

 V,  5  101 

Sonship  of  the  Christians  V.  5  9-f 

Sorrow,  Penitential  S.  S  32 

Sorrow  and  sins  E.  E  102 

"Sought  out."  E.  E  71 

Sovereignty,  Divine  S.  S  56 

Sovereignty,  Divine  V.  7  237 

Sovereignty  and  salvation  V.  1  1 

Sovereignty  of  God  in  salvation. V.10  199 

Sovereignty  of  Jesus  M.M  254 

Speak  for  God  E.  E  12 

Spider's  web,  The  M.M  221 

Spoil  divided,  The  V.  7  114 

Spouse,  The  request  of  the  E.  E  34 

Springtime,  Spiritual   E.  E  115 

Stability,  Prayer  for  M.M  193 

"  Stand  still."  M.M  206 

Star,  Christ  a  T.  E  7 

Statute,  An  unalterable  V.  9  117 

St.  Cross,  Hospital  of  M.M  340 

Stories  in  the  Ark  V.  4  12 

Stones,  The  cry  of  the  E.  E  83 

Story,  Tell  the  V.  3  401 

Strength  for  the  day  •  V.  5  49 

Strength  in  weakness  M.M  309 

Strength  promised  M.M  357 

Strength,  Renewal  of  E.  E  2 

strength,  The  secret  of  V.  1  204 

Strength,  Secret  of  V.  5  245 

Strength  to  strength,  From  M.  M  349 

Substitute,  Christ  our              .  .E.  E  104 

Substitute,  Jesus  the  V.  8  103 

'•  Substitution." — The  gospel  in  one 

word  V.  3  99 

Substitute,  The  great  V.  2  289 

Substitution  V.10  247 

Substitution,  illustrated  V.  3  413 

Substitution,  The  complete  V.  8  107 

Suffering  V.  4  354 

Sufferings  of  Christ,  Reason  of. .  .V.  4  216 

Sufferings  of  Christ,  The  V.  6  309 

Sinner  bemoaning  himself,  The.V..  9  206 

Summer  S.  S  162 

Summer  and  winter  M.M  183 

 M.M  336 

Sunday  school,  Children  belong  to 

 V.  2  353 

Sunday  school  lessons,  Five  V.  2  356 

Supping  with  Christ  M.M  290 

Surrender,  entire  V.  2  141 

Sympathy  with  Jesus  in  work  . . .  S.  S  286 


INDEX  OF  SUBJECTS. 


423 


T. 

Page 

Tabernacle  of  Most  High  V  6  34 

Tables,  Fencing  the  V.  1 0  10 

Tale-bearing  M.M  334 

Talents,  The  five  V.  4  130 

Talente,  The  two  V.  4  129 

Talk  without  feeling  V.  8  172 

Teacher,  The  Sabbath  school  V.  9  460 

Teaching,  Children  want  V.  2  352 

Teaching  for  God  V.  2  351 

Temptation  E.  E  40 

Temptation  E.E  51 

Temptation  V.  7  169 

Temptation  V.  1  198 

Temptation  near  E.  E  17 

Temptations,  Our  T.  E  197 

Terrors  by  night  E.  E  113 

Testimony  of  Christ  confirmed  in 

Christians  V.  2  225 

Testimony  of  Jesus  V.  2  219 

Testimony,  The  stepping  stones  of  V.  2  221 

Thirst  slakened  M.M  311 

Thoughts  and  their  fruit  V.  9  157 

Thoughts,  Bad  V.  9  161 

Thoughts,  Blasphemous  V.  7  40 

Thoughts,  Good  V.  9  168 

Thoughts  of  God,  Precious  E.  E  121 

Thoughts,  Sinful  V.  7  97 

Thoughts,  Sinful  V.  9  166 

Thoughts,  The  importance  of. .  .V.10  122 
Thousandth  sermon,  Mr.  Spurgeon 

The  V.  9  284 

"  To-day."  S.  S  55 

Token,  "  The  blood  "  a  distinguish- 
ing V.  10  250 

Tomb  of  Jesus,  The  V.  1  211 

Transubstantiation  V.  6  288 

Travail  for  souls  hindered  V.  9  28 

Travail  for  souls,  The  result  of.  .V.  9  24 

Travailing  for  souls  V  9  13 

Treasures,  Great  V.  9  137 

Treat  yourselves,  How  to  V.  7  106 

Tree,  The  leafless  V.  3  327 

Tree  of  life,  Christ  the  T.  E  134 

Tree  of  Life,  How  to  get  the  fruit  of 

the  T.  E  145 

Tree  of  Life  in  blossom,  The  T.  E  141 

Tree,  The  forbidden  V.10  139 

Tree,  The  healing  V.  9  400 

Trees,  Barren   V.  8  184 

Trees  of  the  Lord  M.  M  298 

Trails,  Domestic  V.  7  48 

Trinity — Union  of,  in  work  for  man 

 M.M  194 

Trinity,  United  agency  of  V.  1  55 

Truth  in  the  believer,  The  M.M  333 

Troop,  The  enemies  of  Christ  a  .T.  E  114 

Trophy,  The  T.  E  113 

Trouble.  Jesus  in  the  hour  of  S.  S  315 

Trust  in  God  E.E  67 

Trust  in  God  M.  M  244 

Truth— Sanctification  through.. M.M  186 

"  Turn  or  burn."  V.  2  426 

Two  worlds,  The  sympathy  of  the  V.  6  46 


XT. 

Page 

Unbelief  V.  4  186 

Unbelief  M.M  240 

Unbelief,  A  parent  sin  V.  2  54 

Unbelief,  Sin  of  V  2  50 

Ud  converted,  A  call  to  the  V  *■  223 

Undecided,  The  appeal  to  ...  .V.  3  179 

Ungodly,  Evil  of  living  among  the 

 M.M  249 

Ungodly  shail  perish,  The  V  4  252 

Uniformity,  Unworldy                M.Ms  179 

Union,  and  oneness  with  Jesus  .S.  S  219 
Union  between  Christ  and  the  be- 
liever, Vital  V.10  21 

Unity  in  the  cause  of  Christ  V.  2  139 

Usefulness,  Keflex  influence  of.  .M.M  234 

V. 

Vail,  The  entrance  within  the..V.  2  117 

Vanguard  of  the  Church,  The  ..V.  5  3S7 

Vanity  and  laziness  E.E  20 

Victory  V.  2  259 

Victory  through  difficulties  T.E  211 

Vileness,  Conscious  M.M  158 

Vine,  The  fruitless  V.  3  58 

Volunteers,  David  and  his  T.E  270 

Waiting:  changed  for  believing  .V.  9  225 

Waiting,  Time  of  E.E  127 

Wakefulness,   The   importance  of 

 V.  9  348 

Walk  of  faith  M.M  262 

''Wanting.  Found  "  M.M  164 

Warning-,  The  neglected  V.  4  240 

Warning,  Words  of  V.  7  242 

Watch  and  pray  E.E  74 

Watchfulness  E.E  117 

Watchfulaess  not  to  be  relaxed.V.10  84 

Way  of  the  Lord  prepared,  The. E.E  3 

Wealth  a  danger  to  piety  V.  9  56 

Weary  and  heavv  laden  V.  9  437 

Weak  hands  and  feeble  knees  .  .V.  6  383 

Wells  in  the  valley  of  Baca  . . .  .M.M  257 

Weeping.  No  more  M.M  236 

Wesievrjohn  V.  7  53 

White.  Clothed  in  M.M  343 

Whitfield  V.  7  53 

Wicked  driven  awav.  The  V.  7  308 

Wieked,  The  resurrection  of... V.  2  273 

Wickedness  hateful  to  God.. .  .M.M  150 

Wife's  place,  The  V.  9  7.2 

Will.  The  Father's  V.10  186 

Window  in  ark,  The  signification  of 

the  V.  4  8 

Wine.  The  best  V.  5  291 

Wishing,  The  vanity  of  V.  9  279 

Witness  of  Christ  for  himself,  The 

 V.  2  222 

Witness,  The  minister's  V.  6  60 

Women's  rights  ...T.E  209 

"  Wonderful,"  The  V.  5  15 

Wonderful,  The  E.E  26 


424 


JNDEX  OF  SUBJECTS. 


Word  of  God  immutable  V.  4  184 

Work  for  God,  The  unhappy  can- 
not  V.  5  207 

Work  for  others  E.E  50 

Work,  When  to  T.E  243 

Workers,  Bands  of  needed  V.  9  459 

Workers  for  God,  Rough  M.M  155 

Works  of  God,  Sudden  V.  6  18 

World  a  harvest,  The   .V.10  168 

World,  Love  of  the  S.S  27 

World,  The  separation  from  T.E  279 

World  turned  upside  down,  The  V.  5  402 


Worldlinees  V.  6  128 

Worldliness  V.  5  279 

Wounded,  All  saved  persons  ....S.S  44 

Wounds,  Faithful  S.S  43 

Y. 

Yoke  of  Christ,  The  V.  9  444 

Z. 

Zeal  V.  6  329 


THE  END. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 
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